


A Raging Fire Inside

by Piggie50



Category: The Hobbit - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Avatar & Benders Setting, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-06-01
Updated: 2014-06-28
Packaged: 2018-02-03 01:19:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 31,017
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1725920
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Piggie50/pseuds/Piggie50
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Bilbo didn’t understand why he had to meet these dwarves, until he realized that Gandalf was a half-witted wizard who had casually passed him off to train the young Durin Prince Kili, also known as the Avatar. Avatar AU/Crossover</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Part 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hey everybody! First story posted up here.  
> Alright, so:  
> Dwarves and men are usually earth benders, but Elves can be too. Men are usually fire benders, but dwarves can be too. Elves are either water or air benders, and Hobbits are water benders if anything at all (which is considered unusual).  
> Okay, well, there may be some OOC so sorry if there is.  
> Now, I hope you enjoy!

Bilbo didn’t understand why he and Gandalf couldn’t have a civilized conversation without the idea of an adventure coming up.  
He had known the man since childhood, and Gandalf had been his only happiness when both of his parents had died, but regardless, the man was a meddler, and could worry the pants off of an respectable hobbit.  
He didn’t know how this certain circumstance had occurred, all he knew was that it was quite unexpected, and entirely unwanted…  
It was a sunny spring day when Gandalf had come to visit.  
Bilbo was in his gardens, deciding to do the work himself for the afternoon, water bending some of the clear liquid from a nearby pail and scattering it into droplets so that all of his plants could be watered at once.  
Bilbo was one of the few water benders in his area, and he took great pride in the fact that he was a master at it, even though it earned him odd looks now and then.  
Today though, he enjoyed letting the extra energy out, and made a few loops around with the water, stretching his dexterous fingers, and letting the soothing feeling of bending lull him into security…Until he heard the garden door creaking open.  
Lowering the water and putting on a scowl Bilbo turned around and came face to face with a certain wizard.  
Overwhelmed, Bilbo let the water drop entirely and smiled widely at the man, rushing forward to hug him tightly around the knees, “Gandalf! I didn’t think you were coming until Old Took’s birthday next month!”  
The wizard chuckled, patting the hobbit on the back, “indeed young Bilbo. But a better time came up, and so, here I am.”  
Bilbo moved back a little so he could tilt his head up and grin at the man, “and I’m so glad for it. Tell me, was Erebor as magnificent as they say?”  
The wizard had left the Shire last time to journey to the great mountain kingdom of Erebor for some diplomatic meetings that seemed to have made him a bit anxious.  
Gandalf’s eyes lost a bit of their light, “ah…yes. Erebor stands tall and mighty. The halls shine with gold and jewels, but, perhaps we could talk about this inside with a spot of tea?”  
Bilbo nodded quickly, “of course, of course. Come in.” He left the half-full pail behind and hurried to the nearby door of his house, opening it and scurrying in, “I want to hear all about the mountain!”  
Gandalf sighed quietly to himself, “you might not just be hearing about it my young friend,” he muttered to himself as he followed the hobbit…  
As they settled in with hot tea and scones with jam Gandalf told him of Erebor, the lovely mountain kingdom.  
“Thorin, the King Under the Mountain, approached me with a problem while I was there,” the wizard explained, water bending his tea so that the lump of sugar he added melted quickly, “he needs a trainer for his nephew, Kili.”  
Bilbo stared, pausing mid-chew as he gathered the words. Kili Durin was the newest Avatar, of the fire bending quality, and was apparently rather energetic and rebellious compared to the previous ones.  
Gandalf continued on as though there had not been a pause, “Kili needs a water bending instructor it seems, as he had gone and learned the rest of the elements out of order. Thorin is desperate for someone who can put up with his nephew’s personality and compulsive need to learn.” He took a quick sip of tea, “I offered myself of course, but, it seems that I was too hasty and was soon called out on it. The Lady Galadriel communicated with me soon after I agreed and told me that I cannot train our young Avatar after all.”  
Bilbo furrowed his brow, “but, why ever not? Surely you’re the most eligible to do so.” Gandalf had taught him a fair amount of water bending himself, and Bilbo was confident in saying that the man was one of the best teachers he had ever seen.  
The wizard smiled slightly at him, “Lady Galadriel has sent me on a mission you see, and I cannot be in two places at once, so I had to go back and tell Thorin that I would find a replacement.”  
Bilbo licked a bit of jam off of his lips, “and have you? Found a replacement that is.”  
Gandalf looked at him over the rim of his cup, “I believe I have Mr. Baggins…”  
Bilbo nearly choked, “what-no-I mean, I couldn’t! I’m just a hobbit, and I’m not even as good a bender as you are!”  
Gandalf snorted, “you are the best bender I have ever taught, and I am sure that you will prove an apt teacher Bilbo Baggins. You have the patience of a saint with children, and you are gentle and kind in your practices.”  
Bilbo flushed at all of the compliments but he still stammered out, “but the Avatar’s a prince! I wouldn’t know how to act or anything! I couldn’t treat him like I treat others!”  
Gandalf huffed, “believe me Bilbo, once you meet Avatar Kili you will most certainly be able to treat him like all of the others.”  
Bilbo stared worriedly at him, fiddling with a nearby teaspoon.  
Gandalf sighed and reached over to pat his hand, “please Bilbo. You are the best I know of, and I feel that you would be perfect for the job. I will only trust the best for this adventure.”  
More adventures.  
Finally, Bilbo sighed, “alright…I’ll give it a try…but if it doesn’t work out I’m coming right back home and never thinking of adventures or anything of the sort again, got it?!”  
Gandalf mysteriously nodded his head, “as you say Bilbo Baggins,” but even after he started eating a scone there seemed to be more behind his casual words…  
Bilbo left the next day, packing only the bare minimum of things that he needed for the journey, and then joined Gandalf on the road.  
The wizard had procured a pony, by the name of Myrtle, for him, so Bilbo at least did not have to walk the entire two week journey to Erebor.  
Gandalf was a good traveling companion, as he spoke only when he felt the urge to, but did not begrudge Bilbo as he chattered on nervously about nearly everything in sight.  
The journey did not last long it seemed, as Gandalf was there to watch after him, and Bilbo felt new and fresh with different scenery around him.  
They arrived in Dale sooner than planned, after only a week and a half of traveling, and Gandalf told Bilbo that he needed to stop for a quick errand before they proceeded onward to Erebor.  
Happy to prolong the inevitable Bilbo agreed and walked around the street to stretch his weary legs.  
Merchants of every sort tried to coax him into buying exotic spices or handsome silk, but Bilbo declined them all, simply stopping every now and then to observe and admire.  
After about twenty minutes he was distracted by a scene happening before him.  
Nearby, in a shallow alleyway stood a gaggle of boys, surrounding something which was huddling in a corner.  
Intrigued Bilbo moved nearer, surprised when he came close enough to see a scared looking boy curled up in the corner, shivering as the boys above him taunted him.  
“An ugly little thing,” one of the boys said, his taller stature given to him by his lineage of Men, and being used for the wrong reason entirely.  
“Yes,” another agreed, a hairy young dwarf, “we should take away those pretty jewels he’s wearing, better people deserve to wear them!”  
Bilbo turned sour at that and put his hands on his hips, speaking up, “well then, who do you propose should wear them, because I don’t see anyone better in sight.”  
The group turned around, staring at Bilbo with surprised and annoyed looks on their faces.  
The first boy looked him up and down, “and who do you think you are? I don’t see a guards uniform on you.”  
Bilbo frowned, “I don’t have to be a guard to stop bullying. Now, step away from the dwarfling, he’s had enough of your stupidity.”  
The shaky dwarf stared up at him from behind the others, a worshipping look on his face as he latched onto a pack by his side.  
The hairy dwarf scoffed, “as if you could do anything to us, stupid hobbit.”  
Bilbo narrowed his eyes and reached for the small water flask at his waist, “alright,” he decided, “don’t say I didn’t warn you.”  
The dwarf opened his mouth again, but was surprised when it was suddenly covered with a thick coating of ice, obstructing any speech.  
The others stared at him for a moment, shocked, before turning to look back at the hobbit, watching the swirling liquid hover by his open palm.  
The hobbit scowled at them, “anyone else, or have you had a sufficient lesson of keeping your mouth shut?”  
The boys’ grumbled but edged away from the alleyway, allowing for the previously cornered dwarf to emerge and rush past them, going to stand behind Bilbo.  
The hobbit nodded, “good choice.” He bended the water back into the flask, “now, run along and go home, and don’t cause anymore trouble.”  
The boys’ walked off, shooting glares at Bilbo the whole time.  
Once they were out of sight Bilbo sighed and turned to look at the dwarf he had just defended.  
The dwarf stared at him, dark eyes wide as he hugged his satchel close to his chest.  
Bilbo swallowed awkwardly, “uh…are you alright? Did they hurt you?”  
The other shook his head quickly, “no, no, but…wow! You were amazing! I haven’t seen a water bender in these streets in a long time! You were amazing! Could I ask you some questions on water bending some time, reading about it just isn’t the same.”  
Bilbo startled, “um…alright…I suppose.” He remembered his manners then and held out a hand, “forgive me, I’m Bilbo Baggins.”  
The dwarf clasped his hand quickly, shaking it haphazardly, “Ori, Ori Ri. I live in the mountain.”  
Bilbo parted his lips in understanding, “oh, well, I’m actually on my way there now. I’m just waiting for a friend. Are you going there now? We could go together.” He didn’t want the lad out and about with bullies wandering around, what if they came back to seek revenge on him?!  
Ori flushed, biting his lip, “well, I suppose I should go back. I snuck out earlier to observe Dale and write about it…I’m sure my brother’s worried.”  
Bilbo chuckled, “alright then, come on, we can go and get my pony.”  
They walked together, Ori excitedly asking him questions all the while. Finally, when they arrived back at the shop where Myrtle was tied Gandalf was standing by his own horse with his bright eyes twinkling as though he knew what kind of mischief Bilbo had just gotten into.  
Bilbo climbed up on top of Myrtle, waving a hand at Gandalf, “Ori, this is my friend I was telling you about. Gandalf the Gray, a great wizard.”  
Ori stared up at the man, his mouth hanging wide open, “y-you’re the wizard that visited Erebor not long ago. The new teacher for Prince Kili!”  
Gandalf chuckled, reaching down to pluck the dwarf from the ground and place him before himself on the saddle of his pewter colored stallion.  
“Actually, my dear dwarf, the hobbit who just introduced us is the Prince’s new teacher, and we’re on the way to tell the King that as we speak.”  
Ori looked back at Bilbo with wide eyes, “y-you!”  
Bilbo sighed, he had a feeling he was going to get that reaction from a great many people, and not in the same manner…  
Erebor was a great and vast mountain as Bilbo soon found out.  
The outside may have been gray and dreary looking, but the inside was anything but.  
King Thorin had kept up his grandfather’s tradition of luxuriously decorating the palace walls with jewels, and Bilbo couldn’t stop himself from running his small fingers across a few veins of gold as they were led to the throne room.  
They had parted ways with Ori once they entered the mountain, the young dwarf trudging off to find his older brother, and Gandalf and Bilbo were carted off by a pair of guards.  
Now, as they entered the great throne room Bilbo could see why the dwarves were so talked about and envied. The entire room was filled with gold: golden statues, golden idols, and a golden throne on which a gold clad king sat.  
Thorin Oakenshield Durin was a tall dwarf, and his piercing blue eyes betrayed neither his emotions nor bending.  
The Durin family was the only line of fire bending dwarves known, and they had remained that way for centuries. They were masters at it, and had battled dragons a great many for their land, home, and kin.  
Now, staring up at King Thorin Bilbo felt a shiver run down his spine.  
The King stared down at them for a moment before standing up and pacing down the small set of stairs to stop a few feet in front of Gandalf.  
“So,” he said in a deep voice, “this is the hobbit.”  
Bilbo licked his lips, afraid to look away, but, Thorin was not looking at him, instead, he was looking at Gandalf with a dark expression.  
“Are you sure he is fit for the task,” the king asked, his brows lowered.  
Bilbo pursed his lips, feeling anger rising within him as Gandalf answered the inquiry.  
“Of course. Bilbo is a master water bender and will be a match for Kili’s enigmatic personality. You will see, he will prove himself equal to the task.”  
Thorin scowled but turned to look at Bilbo finally, his expression dour as he looked the hobbit up and down.  
“You are not what I thought you would be,” he told the water bender, and Bilbo felt his anger soar then.  
“Well,” he exclaimed, “excuse me my King! I was not told what sort of specimen I had to be to teach your nephew, the Avatar!”  
Thorin stared at him for a moment before turning away, his thick hair escaping from under his crown and hiding his face, “you may just do,” he said after a moment of silence, turning and climbing back up to his throne.  
Bilbo stared after him, confused and silent until Gandalf touched his shoulder lightly, signaling that it was time for them to leave the king.  
Bilbo let himself be led away, but he couldn’t stop himself from looking back, oddly enough, as he did, he was met with stormy blue eyes that followed him until the throne room doors closed sternly behind them…  
Gandalf said nothing of Bilbo’s behavior as he led them through the complex halls of the castle, instead, he stopped just outside of a door and turned to the hobbit, “listen to me Bilbo, the Avatar is a great believer in mischief, and he may try to trick you, with the help of his brother, Fili. So, be careful around them, and don’t let them rattle you too much.”  
Bilbo stared up at him, “what are you saying? Aren’t you staying here for a few days until I get settled?”  
Gandalf shook his head serenely, “I’m afraid not. My new task is eagerly awaiting, but I promise that I will return as soon as it is over.” He put a hand on Bilbo’s head, a motion that would usually annoy the hobbit if anyone else did it. “Take care Bilbo Baggins, and try your very best.”  
Bilbo continued to look at him until the wizard left him and hurried back the way that they had come, his gray robes dragging along behind him until he was out of sight.  
Sadly, Bilbo took a deep breath and steeled himself, turned to face the door, and opened it without another moment’s hesitation…  
The room inside was a training area, and was in complete and total despair.  
Training dummies were destroyed, and the whole room appeared to have scorch marks, even on the ceiling. The floor was ragged from earth bending, and shreds of mysterious parchment were strewn about.  
Bilbo looked up in amazement as he observed the obvious culprits.  
One of the dwarves was being backed into a corner, his dark hair flying into his face as he air bended a blast towards the other blonde dwarf.  
The blonde dwarf grinned at the attack and sent a quick flare of fire the other’s way, making the brunette earth bend a shield to save himself.  
Bilbo huffed out a puff of air and crossed his arms, waiting for the two to stop until he said something.  
After a few more half-hearted bursts of bending the two gave up, panting for breath and laughing all the while.  
Then, and only then, did Bilbo clear his throat, making the two look over at him.  
The two dwarves heads turned towards him and Bilbo found himself caught in the stare of two pairs of eyes, one blue and the other a dark, dark brown.  
After a moment of silence the brunette stood up quickly, nearly stumbling, and rushed over to Bilbo, a wide grin on his youthful face.  
“Sifu Bilbo! Uncle Thorin said you would be arriving soon! It’s so good to meet you, I’m Kili!”  
Bilbo blinked, he had never imagined the Avatar to be so laid back and carefree, but here he was, smiling happily at him, even as he panted, exhausted.  
Bilbo cleared his throat again, managing a small bow, “it’s a pleasure to meet you Avatar Kili. I hope that I will be able to prove useful to your training.”  
The Avatar frowned, opening his mouth to say something, but was cut off when the other dwarf swept forward, grinning broadly at Bilbo.  
“I’m sure you’ll prove yourself useful,” the blonde said, his tone friendly and casual, not at all condescending. “I’m Fili by the way,” he said, swiping a lock of hair back from his face, “I’ll probably sit in when you’re training Kili some. I try to skip my princely duties as much as possible.” He gave the hobbit a wink and Bilbo simply stared.  
Now that he looked closer he could see that this was the Crown Prince; the royal insignia shone golden on his outfit, and the deep red of fire benders adorned his clothes.  
Bilbo shook himself from his stupor and gave a small smile, “just try not to disrupt your brother’s training too much.”  
Fili blinked at him for a moment before tilting his head back and laughing richly, Kili smirking at him. Once he was finished he looked back at Bilbo, wiping at his eyes, “I like you Bilbo. The other teachers always tried to separate us, they thought Kili would learn better that way.”  
Kili grinned boyishly at Bilbo, his smile a little sheepish as the water bender frowned, “well…I most certainly will not keep you away from each other, if that makes you uncomfortable. Besides, I’m just a hobbit, what right do I have to tell princes, and the Avatar, what to do?”  
Kili leaned forward and wrapped an arm around his shoulders nonchalantly, “you have every right,” he grinned down at Bilbo once more, “so, when do we begin?”  
Bilbo didn’t even know what to say…  
They didn’t begin training right away, instead, Kili and Fili departed, saying they had to clean up before their mid-day meal and other lessons, leaving Bilbo alone in the training room with a promise that they would find someone to take him to his new room.  
When the door shut behind them Bilbo sighed greatly and let the tension fall from his shoulders.  
Looking around he tried to analyze how to best train his new pupil.  
He was in the middle of looking at a dummy, contemplating teaching Kili how to use water bending for healing when the door slammed open, admitting a hulking figure inside.  
Bilbo whirled around to stare at the figure, a dwarf, with a large tattooed body and armor on, a pair of axes seen just behind his shoulders, strapped to his back.  
Bilbo gulped, hand inching towards his water flask, “can I help you?”  
The dwarf grunted, “Bilbo Baggins?” His brows were raised and he looked far from impressed.  
The water bender swallowed, “yes, that’s me.”  
The man frowned for a moment, “I’m Dwalin, Captain of the Guard. You’re to come with me. I’ll show you around the castle and take you to your rooms.”  
Bilbo blinked, “oh. Well, alright then. Pleased to make your acquaintance.”  
The dwarf looked him over, saying that they were anything but acquaintance’s with his look before turning and trudging out of the door, leaving Bilbo to follow him.  
Frowning at the dwarf’s back Bilbo waited a moment before walking off after him, the only sound in the training room the shutting of the great door behind him…  
As they walked down the halls together Bilbo felt a great amount of awkwardness between them as his companion was completely silent and seemed a bit brooding.  
“So,” Bilbo finally mustered, tired of the silence, “are you a bender?” He had assumed most dwarves with high stature were benders, but it would be rude to think so if the man was not.  
“Yes,” Dwalin rumbled, “an earth bender. Metal bender too.”  
Bilbo stopped in his tracks, staring openly at the other male, surprised and amazed.  
Once Dwalin noticed he wasn’t following anymore he stopped too, scowling at the hobbit when he turned to look at him, “what?”  
Bilbo merely blinked at him, “y-you’re a metal bender!”  
The guard hunched his shoulders, his frown marring his face, “what of it. I’m sure there are plenty in Middle Earth. I am merely one of them.”  
Bilbo scoffed and crossed his arms, “of course, and fire benders are common in the Shire.”  
Dwalin gave him a blank look and Bilbo sighed, “they are not common where I come from,” he told the dwarf, shaking his head.  
Dwalin snorted, “that may explain some things.”  
Bilbo looked up at him, “what things?”  
The dwarf was shut off again though, “nothing,” he said, “it does not concern you.” He turned and started walking again, calling back, “have you really never met a metal bender before?”  
Bilbo shook his head, “no. I didn’t think they existed any more. I thought perhaps that particular bending style had gone away, or was perhaps just hidden from the world.”  
Dwalin nodded, “dwarves are particular about who they share their secrets with.” He stopped then, just before another large door, “here are your lodgings. I’ll send someone with some food for you, then I’ll come and get you when its time for supper.”  
Bilbo glanced at him, “am I not allowed to explore the castle?”  
Dwalin’s expression turned dark, “there are things you may not be ready to see in these halls hobbit.”  
Bilbo frowned at him, wanting to ask questions, but the dwarf was already walking away, leaving Bilbo to ponder his words…  
Bilbo’s room was enormous, much bigger than any of his rooms back home, even larger than his sitting room.  
A large canopy bed invited him to try it out but he ignored it in favor of setting down his bags and looking at the nearly empty bookshelves that were shoved against one of the walls.  
They contained books on bending, mostly fire, but none on water.  
The hobbit sighed and instead moved to sit on the window seat, staring out of a thoughtfully provided window, the nearby rocky hills making Bilbo sigh. He missed his home already.  
But he had a job to do, so, he straightened up and went to unpack, trying to give himself some small comfort in the things he had brought from his hobbit hole…  
Dwalin, true to his word, showed up much later to retrieve Bilbo for the evening meal.  
They walked down to the feast hall, the sound of chatter and music echoing around them as they moved ever closer.  
Bilbo tried to squelch his nervousness as they edged closer, but he couldn’t. The thought of meeting all of the dwarves was just too overwhelming, and he couldn’t shake off the feeling of dread in meeting perfect strangers.  
Dwalin shoved the hall’s doors open, causing for there to be a slight lapse in conversation as most of the dwarves stopped to look at the newcomer.  
Then, they spotted Bilbo.  
Silence.  
Bilbo gulped and twisted his hands behind his back, clutching the blue material of his vest tightly as Dwalin grunted at the other dwarves.  
“Problem?” He asked them, striding forward to go and sit near the head of the long table where the king was seated, drinking from a rich golden goblet.  
Bilbo’s nervousness increased tenfold.  
Until one small voice called out to him.  
“Mister Bilbo!”  
The hobbit looked around, finally pinpointing the voice as Ori stood up, waving at him, “come sit with me,” the small dwarf said happily, prompting Bilbo to move himself and trod over to the young one.  
The others took up their chatter again as Bilbo sat down, Ori smiling at him.  
“It’s good to see you again,” Ori said as he handed him a cup filled with ale, “I was hoping you would join us for supper tonight. I thought you might have been busy.”  
Bilbo smiled gently at him, taking a sip of the proffered drink, it tasted weak on his tongue, “I’m afraid I won’t be busy until tomorrow when the Avatar’s lessons start.”  
“Tomorrow?!” A new voice cut in then and Bilbo turned to look at Kili, whom he had not even noticed until then.  
“Yes,” Bilbo said calmly as he reached for a piece of bread, “we need to get started right away. Water bending is not something to wait for. You must be ready for change at a moments notice and accept it.”  
Fili nudged his brother in the side and chuckled at his appalled expression.  
“But,” Kili protested, “I thought I had to study it first, you know, with books and all.” He looked annoyed at the prospect of reading but Bilbo scrunched up his nose.  
“Bending isn’t something you really study,” he said, “it’s just something you do. You’re born with the instinct to do it.” He was aware that others were listening in to their conversation but Bilbo was too enraptured to pay much attention.  
Kili nearly knocked over his goblet as he leaned forward in haste, “so, I don’t have to read about water bending, I can just start doing it?!”  
Bilbo stifled a small laugh by taking a bite of bread, “I suppose so. Besides, I haven’t seen a single water bending scroll in Erebor. Reading about it might be a bit difficult then.”  
“Forgive us then,” the deep voice of the king interrupted, “for being unprepared for your teachings. No water bender has lived in Erebor since we parted ways with the elves.”  
That had been a very long time ago indeed.  
Bilbo glanced over at the king, those blue eyes piercing, “I wasn’t trying to offend you,” the hobbit clarified, “I should have brought my own scrolls if I intended to teach the Avatar with them.”  
Thorin continued to stare at him but Bilbo abandoned his gaze to instead nibble on a small bit of ham.  
Fili looked between his uncle and the water bender, smirking, “perhaps you would like to attend some of Kili’s lessons Uncle,” he crowed loudly, making Bilbo look up at him in surprise.  
Fili continued, blue eyes alight, “this way you can see how the hobbit teaches, and perhaps you may learn a bit yourself. I’ve heard using other element’s techniques can be quite useful in a battle.”  
Thorin narrowed his eyes at his nephew and angrily bit into a roll, chewing and swallowing before replying, “perhaps I will go and watch,” he said, glaring daggers at the golden haired prince.  
Kili looked ill at the thought and Bilbo hoped that he didn’t look quite as peaky as the Avatar, no matter how he felt…


	2. Part 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> ~Bilbo didn’t know how he could train an Avatar who was intent on making his life a living hell. Instead, he decided to focus on why the King was treating him so unkindly…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I decided to just go ahead and post the next chapter to see if anyone would get involved.  
> Sorry if things are weird, I'm still trying to figure out how all of this works up here.  
> Enjoy!

The next morning Bilbo trekked into the training room with a pair of heavy eyes and a head of askew curls.

He had forgotten how much different it was trying to sleep in an unknown place, and his night had been restless and worrying.

Now, he looked up to find Kili twirling a small handful of pebbles around his fingers, his brother, Fili, watching him as he did so with a bored expression on his face.

Bilbo took a deep breath and straightened up, “alright,” he called out, “time to go out and start practicing some water bending.”

Kili sat up from his previous position, dropping the rocks, “you mean,” he started, “that you were serious about jumping right into training?”

Bilbo raised a brow at him, “of course,” he said, “what reason would I have to lie to you?”

Kili bit his lip and shrugged, standing up in a lithe way, hurrying up to Bilbo, smiling nervously at him, “so, where do we start?”

The hobbit smiled back at him gently…

Fili and Kili had led him to an area where a small waterfall released its water into a pool that looked deep enough to wade in without fear of being sucked under.

“Now,” Bilbo said as he removed his vest and set down his flask of water and belt, “take off whatever clothes you don’t want ruined and get into the water.”

Kili looked at him curiously but did as he said, quickly hopping out of his boots and laying aside his embroidered shirt and belt. As he rolled up his pants his brother snickered at him, claiming a nearby boulder as his seat. 

Once Kili was done he splashed into the water, looking at Bilbo eagerly who was knee high in the pool.

The hobbit leaned down to place a hand in the water, “follow my motions,” he told the brunette prince, “feel the water moving around you. Water is calm and collected. It is serene and beautiful. It helps to provide life, and flows through all of us.”

Kili stared into the water, eyes wide as he listened to Bilbo, barely blinking  
.  
The hobbit went on, feeling more confident now that his pupil was listening, “water is flexible and will do as you say as long as you know how to guide it.”

He slowly bended the water to rise up with him as he straightened, “a water bender must remain calm and trust in their element,” he told the Avatar, watching as Kili stared at the water the hobbit was bending.

“Water is an element that can be taken from another and used as your own,” Bilbo said as he bended the water to loop around him, close to touching him but shying away when it got too close. “You can use water to turn an offense into a defense,” he splashed the water towards Kili but bended it back into the pool before it could hit the prince.

“Now,” he said calmly as he clapped his hands together, “I want you to try and call the water towards you. If you are calm and trust in it the water will be urged to come closer to you and respond to your will.”

He lifted a hand, taking a water bender training pose, “observe.”

Taking a deep breath he felt the pull of the water as he exhaled, his chi working to move the water towards him and near the sandy shore behind him.

He heard Kili quietly gasp and he opened eyes that he did not realize were closed. Instead of the small pull of water he thought he had been doing Bilbo had accidentally called most of the pool towards him, leaving it hovering nearby, waiting to be guided.

Embarrassed, he quickly lowered his arms, letting go of the water, allowing for it to crash back into its original position.

He glanced at the two princes who were staring at him, mouths open.

The hobbit flushed, “sorry,” he mumbled to them, “sometimes I do more than I think I’m doing. That’s always been a problem with me.”

Kili lifted his arms, waving them wildly, “are you serious?! That was amazing! I’ve never seen anything like that! And you didn’t even know you were doing it!”

Fili tugged on his moustache, “its very impressive,” he conceded, staring into the water before him, “I’ve never known someone to not be fully conscious of their abilities like this before.”

Bilbo felt his face turn red from anger and nerves, “look, I said I was sorry, alright?! I can’t help it sometimes! Besides, we need to focus on Kili and train him!”

Fili looked over at him for a moment before smirking, “I meant no harm Master Baggins, I was merely stating that that kind of power is uncommon and is admirable.”

Bilbo blinked, glancing at the Avatar who was nodding rapidly along with his brother’s words.

Not sure what to say the hobbit shook his head, “just…just don’t tell anyone please. The other hobbits took it as a sign that my bending was uncontrollable and dangerous. I don’t want to scare anyone here in Erebor.”

Both of the prince’s nodded seriously after he finished, their agreement obvious.

Bilbo took a deep breath then, appeased for the moment, “let’s just…get back to training then, alright?”

Kili grinned at him, shifting into a pose that was entirely wrong for water bending.   
The water bender shook his head, they had a lot of work to do…

After hours of practice they decided to quit for the day, Bilbo exhausted from having to explain things, and Kili annoyed with himself for not getting it right.

“Why can’t I just do it?!” He yelled out furiously as they walked back into Erebor’s halls.  
Bilbo ignored the looks they received from the roar and reached out to pat the brunette prince on the back, “don’t worry,” he consoled, “it may be hard for you to understand because you’re a fire bender originally. Most Avatars have a hard time getting bending that is opposite their natural one, or their personality.”

Fili nodded from beside him, “indeed. Many Avatars have to train for years before they get it fully right.”

Kili frowned, “but I don’t want to train for years! I want to be a natural at it, like Bilbo!”  
The hobbit flushed, opening his mouth to respond when suddenly someone yelled, “look out!”

Bilbo looked up in the direction of the voice and his eyes widened; a bucket full of paint was coming their way, ready to rain down on the trio.

Quickly pushing the two prince’s out of the way Bilbo rushed to bend the paint away from him, but it was too late.

With a splat Bilbo shut his eyes and felt the sticky wetness of the paint weighing his curls down and streaming down his now ashen face.

“I’m so sorry!” A voice called out, sounding closer than before and Bilbo cautiously opened his eyes, squinting at the newcomer.

The dwarf stared at him with worried dark eyes, his hat flapping up and down as he hurried over to Bilbo’s side.

Fili and Kili were back up on their feet now and didn’t even have the urge to laugh as they watched Bilbo blink rapidly, reaching up to scrub paint away from his eyes.

“I slipped on the ladder,” the dwarf was saying, wringing his hands together, “the bucket flew from my hands before I could do anything else. Here, let me help!” He pulled out a spare cloth from his pocket but Bilbo held out a hand, stopping him.

“It’s alright,” he said finally, breathing in quickly before gracefully twisting his hands in a bending motion, the paint coming off of him in a swirling deluge, eddying in the air for a few moments before spinning downward into the previously dumped bucket.

The dwarf stared at him, “you-you’re a-”

“It’s fine,” Bilbo said, wiping once more at his eyes just in case of excess paint, “the paint was mostly made of water anyway. But, I should probably go and wash it off just in case.”

The dwarf leapt forward, grabbing hold of the hobbit’s shoulders, “you’re a water bender!”

Bilbo blinked rapidly, a bit appalled, “um…yes. I’ve just arrived here…and…you are…?”  
The dwarf let go of him then, tugging off his hat and sweeping into a bow, “the name’s Bofur,” he provided, “at your service!”

Bilbo nodded, “oh. Well, Bilbo Baggins, at yours.”

The dwarf straightened from his bow and put his hat back on, smiling at the hobbit before taking hold of the bucket once more, “I really am sorry about that,” he said again, “I was re-painting the molding near the ceiling.” He pointed and Bilbo looked up, indeed seeing that half of the crown molding was painted a dark blue in place of the faded orange that lay beneath it.

“That seems like fun,” Bilbo said, as he had once enjoyed the odd water color himself now and then.

Bofur nodded, “it is. My cousin, Bifur, and I have a painting business. We used to make toys, but since Bifur became ill and couldn’t earth bend the toys anymore we decided to do just painting.”

Bilbo nodded understandingly, “I see. Does…Bifur…also paint?”

Bofur’s eyes crinkled as he nodded, “some. He does walls while I climb up and do ceilings and such.”

Bilbo wanted to talk more, interested, but Kili suddenly took hold of his arm.

“Sorry to be rude,” Fili said diplomatically, “but I’m afraid we must be going. Kili and I are late for our lessons and Bilbo should go and get cleaned up.”

Bofur nodded, mouth in a small ‘o’, “of course,” he said, waving them on, “perhaps we will see each other again soon Mister Baggins.”

Bilbo waved back at him as he was dragged off, “I hope so! Happy painting!”

As Bofur smiled back at him nodding, Bilbo tried to ignore the rough handling his arm was being abused with, but it was hard to as the grip just tightened…

After Bilbo washed the remaining paint and dirt from his skin he put fresh clothes on and journeyed out to explore his new habitat a bit.

Servants bustled around, but nary one gave Bilbo a second glance as he moved past, observing the large stained glass windows that depicted scenes of great battles and nearly blocked out all sunlight.

He stopped when he came to a particular one, a warrior fire bending a dragon’s heated breath, the scales of the beast scarlet and bloody.

“Ah, that was a great and might battle.” A voice nearby said and Bilbo turned to look.  
Standing there, with a small smile on his face was an older dwarf, his white beard twisted at the end, his hands behind his back as he looked at Bilbo then back at the window.

“The dragon, Smaug, was an enemy of all of Middle Earth and tried to steal Erebor from us dwarves. He put up such a fight, but our good king was stronger. Thorin was able to defeat the beast with its own fire, Smaug burning from the inside out.” He didn’t look pleased or unhappy with the last statement but Bilbo just stared.

“Thorin?! He defeated the dragon?”

The dwarf grinned, “of course. He sought to protect his homeland and succeeded, he is revered among his people.”

Bilbo blinked, “he must be a powerful fire bender to have used a dragon’s own fire against it.”

The dwarf nodded, “he once bended lava in order to save his father from a pale orc by the name of Azog.”

Bilbo knew that tale. Thrain, Thorin’s father had died of his wounds soon after the fight, but he had not died in vain. His son proved his eternal worth in that battle, and the dwarves were confident when Thorin had led them to victory that day.

“His father had never been prouder,” the dwarf said as he overlooked Bilbo’s thoughtful silence.

Bilbo looked up in surprise, “because his son had bended lava?”

The dwarf shook his head, “no, because his son had risked his life and his very bending to save someone who did not have a chance.”

Bilbo parted his lips sadly, “you’re saying he would have died either way?”

The dwarf glanced at him out of the corner of his eye, “I’m saying, Thrain would have passed on with total belief in his son and nothing else.”

They fell silent after that, Bilbo staring up at the warrior in the painting, trying to imagine the might of Thorin in battle but he could not.

“Balin by the way,” the dwarf said after a few more minutes, “advisor to the King. You’ll have met my younger, and impetuous brother Dwalin.”

Bilbo smiled, “yes. Are you a metal bender too?”

Balin laughed heartily, “goodness no! I’m a simple sand bender, nothing so magnificent as my brother. I’m the more intellectual of the two while Dwalin has always tried to prove his worth on the battlefield.” His tone wasn’t tinged with envy, but instead hinted at pride in his younger sibling.

The dwarf turned to him then, “come now, I think Thorin is having a meeting, and we could sneak you in.”

Bilbo put up his hands, “oh no! I don’t think that’s a good idea. I get the feeling the King doesn’t like me very much.”

Balin smiled secretly at him, “suit yourself, but of course he likes you. If he didn’t he would have sent you away the moment you yelled at him when you first met.”  
Bilbo winced, “you know about that?”

The dwarf winked, “Bilbo, everyone knows about that.”

The hobbit paused, eyeing the other suspiciously, “I don’t recall telling you my name…”  
Balin grinned, turning away, “everyone knows that too.”

He walked away slowly then, humming a little tune to himself, leaving Bilbo to wonder if he had just made a new friend or not…

That night as Bilbo settled in beside Ori he noticed that the King was glaringly absent, something that he felt both relieved and disappointed about.

But his worry was quickly diminished when he was introduced to some new faces among the Company.

Ori introduced his brothers, Dori and Nori, to Bilbo with pride, his tone admiring as he talked about them. Dori was paternal and a bit of a hoverer, his earth bending often used to corral his younger brothers close to him so he could keep an eye on them.

Nori was a trickster, often using his earth and metal bending to put himself into and out of dangerous situations while he was out thieving. His adoration and loyalty towards his family was apparent though, and Bilbo thought he was a bit on the funny side.

The hobbit was introduced to Bombur, a hugely portly man, who was the brother of Bofur, though they looked nothing alike.

Beside Bombur was the infamous Bifur, an axe poking out of his head, startling Bilbo at first before the dwarf presented him with a small carved dragon of the highest quality.

After that, Bilbo met another set of brothers as well, Oin and Gloin, their friendly disposition making Bilbo feel welcome and calm.

Gloin told Bilbo all about his wife and young son, Gimli, and soon enough the hobbit felt as though he knew them almost as well as he knew his own family. The dwarf was proud of his child’s bending abilities and invited the water bender to come and watch Gloin teach Gimli sometime.

Oin was not an earth bender like his brother but was an adept dwarf in his own right. He was a healer, and seemed quite interested to hear that Bilbo could also heal with his own bending. The two promised to share trade secrets with each other and Bilbo left the hall feeling cheerful and more at home.

Until he ran into the king in the hall.

Thorin grunted as Bilbo crashed into him, not moving back but raising his hands up to help Bilbo from toppling over where he stood.

“Halfling,” the king rumbled, letting go of him.

Bilbo frowned up at him, “Bilbo, is my name. And I would thank you to call me that.” Outwardly he might have appeared callous but Bilbo was shaking on the inside, what right did he have to tell a king what to call him?

Thorin stared down at him, blue eyes flashing in something akin to anger before he went to sidestep the water bender, head haughtily raised.

Bilbo scowled, turning to watch him as he started walking away, “you shouldn’t be so hard on Kili and his training!” He called out, common sense abandoning him.

Thorin stopped and looked over his shoulder at the hobbit, eyes narrowing, “who says I am hard on him about his training? Kili knows what is expected of him and what he must do.”

Bilbo crossed his arms, “the Avatar looked fairly terrified at the mention of you showing up at his practice, and assumed I would be harsh with him during his training. I can only assume you had something to do with that.”

Surprisingly, Thorin smirked, turning a bit more towards him. “Well, you assume incorrectly,” the dwarf king said, hands bracing themselves on his hips, “Durins are prideful, and Kili simply did not want me to see him if he failed to impress.”

Bilbo’s brow furrowed, “but he did not mind having Fili there with him.” He was still doubtful, but of what he had seen of the royal dwarves they were filled with pride, so perhaps Thorin’s words were true yet.

The King nodded slightly, “Fili and Kili are brothers and best friends. They are part of each other. They understand the other more than anything else in this world. Having Fili there encourages Kili, instead of making him nervous.”

Bilbo huffed a breath, “but that still doesn’t explain why he appears frightened when we started training. He looked as though I would ask him to go and sit underwater for hours at a time without coming up for breath.”

Thorin’s grin widened then, and he leaned forward a bit, “that might be partly my fault. When Kili was still in the early stages of his Avatar training he had both Dwalin and myself as tutors.”

Bilbo flinched, imagining what kind of torture the two would put a student through.  
Thorin noticed, “indeed,” he said, teeth glinting in the torchlight of the halls, “Dwalin and I were not very kind to him, I will admit. It’s a wonder he made it through training at all.”  
Bilbo shook his head, “poor boy.”

Thorin’s smile dropped then, replaced with his usual frown, “dwarves have to be strong,” he said sternly, “it would not do to have coddled him in his training.”

Bilbo pursed his lips, “but nearly killing him through it would have been more useful?”

Thorin looked sour, “you may train him as you see fit,” the king spat out, “so long as he is able to master water bending I care not how. But I expect to see progress.”

That made Bilbo angry, “he will be a master at water bending!” He hissed, “and you will rue the day you doubted him!” With that Bilbo turned on his heel, marching away from the king, satisfied to at last have gotten in the last word…

The next day Kili looked ready to keel over as Bilbo set him up to practicing stances.

“This is so boring,” he complained, breaking from his fighting pose, “I want to try moving the water again.”

“No,” Bilbo said from his spot by Fili, “you have to practice discipline. A water bender needs to be able to control themselves before they can control water. Water is a tricky element and is quick to fall out of place. You have to learn restraint.”

Kili sighed heavily but went back to practicing hand motions.

Bilbo rested back against a rock, taking a sip of tea from the pot that Fili had made while his brother had been practicing.

“You’re good with him,” Fili said quietly to the hobbit as they watched Kili frown and mutter to himself. “Most teachers would have given up on him by now, but you’re patient. He needs that.”

Bilbo glanced at the blonde who had taken to fire bending small flames around his fingers.

“Who taught him air bending,” he asked the prince, tilting his head back to get some stray curls from his eyes.

“The prince of Mirkwood,” Fili said, looking bored, “Legolas. His father, King Thranduil, was completely against the idea, but apparently Legolas felt differently so he came here to train Kili.”

Bilbo inhaled deeply, surprised. Dwarves and Elves did not seem to get along very well.  
Fili must have guessed his thoughts as he looked over to grin at the water bender, “I think Legolas did it partly because he wanted to better relations between the woodland elves and my uncle.”

“What was the other reason,” Bilbo asked, captivated by the story.

Fili leaned back a bit, “because he was bored.”

Bilbo frowned, “but…”

“I know,” Fili laughed, going back to watching his brother slip in the water, “it’s a strange reason to teach someone. But Kili got along with the woodland prince well enough and the elf even taught him how to shoot with a bow.”

Bilbo huffed, stretching his arms over his head, sighing in relief when his bones crackled, “well,” he said after a minute, “I’m glad they got along. And from what I can tell Kili seems to have mastered air bending.”

Fili nodded, “he still prefers fire bending though, and he probably always will.”

Bilbo agreed, “it is natural. The Avatar always seems to favor their original element more than others. I suppose I can understand that.”

Fili smiled at him, “you’re very understanding of the Avatar master hobbit.”  
Bilbo shrugged, “I try my best.” 

Noticing that Kili had given up on his posturing and was instead making a leaf drift lazily into the pool he got up from his relaxed position and put his hands on his hips, “alright,” he called out, “time to see what you can do.”

Kili’s eyes widened and he appeared to gulp heavily…

Bilbo felt awful.

It was late in the afternoon and he and Kili sat near the entrance to the mountain, one watching the setting sun, the other staring at the ground, holding back tears.  
Bilbo was the latter.

“It’s really alright Sifu Bilbo,” the young Avatar said as he rubbed against his inner forearm where he had been injured.

“No,” Bilbo said, frantically shaking his head, “it’s not.”

Fili had left their practice hours earlier, groaning about helping his uncle with some peace agreements and Kili had insisted on continuing training.

Tired and a bit on the irritable side Bilbo had agreed, hoping the young prince would tire quickly and they could head back to Erebor.

But that did not happen.

Kili soon grew frustrated with himself again and was splashing around in the water, throwing something that closely resembled a temper tantrum, his hands in fists as he clearly tried to control himself from lashing out with bending.

Bilbo had tried to console him, reaching out to clasp his arm when Kili had moved a hand to shove back at him, accidentally reaching with hands that were suddenly enveloped in fire.

In a hurry Bilbo tried to water bend a wall between himself and the prince, but instead a blockade made of ice came between the two, trapping Kili’s hand in thick frozen gobs and cutting into his skin.

Bilbo had gasped and bended the ice away as quickly as he could with his frazzled nerves.  
Hot blood, much like the earlier fire, had started running down Kili’s arm from where the ice had cut too deeply and Bilbo was stricken.

Gathering a bit of water he hurried to heal it, Kili not making a noise the entire time, simply watching as Bilbo tried to mend his broken skin.

Now, Bilbo stared at the mark from where the ice had cut in.

“It was my fault,” Kili told him firmly, tugging his sleeve down to cover his exposed flesh, “I get angry sometimes and I can’t control myself. I shouldn’t have been so upset by not being able to bend, it’s just…I feel like I’m a disappointment this way.”

Bilbo bit his lip, “you’re not a disappointment. You’re one of the greatest things I’ve ever seen, and I’m confident that you will master all that comes your way if you put your mind to it. You just need to stay hopeful that it will all work out.”

Kili stared at him for a few long minutes before briskly standing up, dragging Bilbo up with him.

“Come on,” the Avatar told him, “I want you to meet someone!”

Not in the mood but too emotionally exhausted to say anything Bilbo let himself be tugged along, still feeling very put out…

Kili didn’t lead them to any certain room, instead, he led them past crowded halls and to where it smelled of hay and animals.

“I want you to meet one of my best friends,” Kili said as he took them to the last door of the hall, a large iron one that was bolted.

Pulling the latch back Kili opened the door and slipped inside, prompting Bilbo to do the same, and almost instantly regret it.

There, inside, was a large komodo rhino, it’s red eyes angry looking and it’s thick hide perfect for preventing water bending.

“This is Breg,” Kili said as he went up and affectionately petted the creature, “he’s my animal guide, as all Avatar’s have one.”

“But,” Bilbo choked out, “he’s a komodo rhino! They’re not even from around here!”

Most of the beasts inhabited the plains of Men and were trained by the riders of Rohan to be great steeds of old.

“Yes,” Kili said as he nuzzled close to the animal, “but I found Breg once when Uncle Thorin took Fili and me out to negotiate with the Men of Dale.” He settled against the creature’s side, scratching it behind the ear, not even heeding the gigantic horns.

“Breg was in an alleyway I had snuck off to explore, sitting there, fading from hunger. I tried to help him but he fought me all the way. His horns were tiny and fragile then, so I tried to be careful of him, but he was just so fierce and violent, so I named him Breg, which means all of that.” He grinned at his pet, earning himself a guttural gurgle in return.

“He’s actually small for his breed,” Kili said as he noticed Bilbo’s nervous stare, “I think it’s because he was so malnourished when I took him in.”

He snuggled back into the gray neck of Breg, “Uncle told me that if I was going to keep him I had to take care of him. Not even Fili was allowed to help me.” He smiled shyly at Bilbo then, “but that was alright. We created a bond that way, and we became best friends. Fili is the only one that can match up to Breg’s friendship.”

Bilbo leaned back against the cold door, watching the Avatar and his familiar, seeing the companionship between the two and couldn’t help but feel a bit envious.

He had never had that with anyone, and he so desperately longed for it…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you all liked it! Don't be shy, leave a comment, I'll do my best to respond!


	3. Part 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> ~Bilbo continues to train the young Prince, but starts to wonder if he is really fit for the task. And finally, Gandalf returns from a trying trip of his own…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks so much to everyone who has commented, left kudos, and that has bookmarked this fic so far!  
> I'd like you to know that I'm taking your comments and recommendations into account, but this work has actually already been completed, but I'm putting it up piece by piece.  
> Enjoy and thanks again!

It had been nearly two weeks since Bilbo had come to stay in Erebor to train the young Avatar and still they had made little progress.  
Kili was finally able to move a bit of water, and was so proud of that fact that he had started using his new bending ability to play tricks on those around him at dinner.  
That earned Bilbo some black looks from the king and his captain of the guard, making Bilbo wince whenever he started Kili on something new.  
Today, Bilbo had started the arduous task of teaching Kili to use offense attacks as defense.  
They started off by simply swirling water around above the crystal pool, Fili and the newly introduced Breg the komodo rhino sitting off to the side observing.  
“Who knew you would find such amusement in twirling water around in the air brother,” the golden haired prince called out teasingly, “it’s almost like when we were children in the bath.”  
Kili flushed a bit, annoyed, but he did his best to ignore his brother and focus on his bending, something that made Bilbo rather proud.  
Bilbo, defending his pupil’s honor, splashed a bit of water the Crown Prince’s way, making him cry out and for his younger brother to snicker at him.  
“Now,” Bilbo directed, looking directly at the Avatar, “I want you to try and take control of the water I’m going to bend at you. This will take the water under your control and make me a little defenseless for a few moments.”  
Kili nodded, eyes bright as he absorbed the new knowledge, hands surprisingly graceful as he lowered them and checked his stance.  
Taking a deep breath Bilbo bended the water his student’s way, trying to give Kili enough time to react but the prince was merely drenched as his bending fell short.  
Bilbo let his hands fall to his sides, tilting his head a little to look at Kili from under his wet hair, “are you alright?”  
The prince blew his bangs out of his face as best as he could then moved into a proper stance, “let’s try again.”  
Fili looked impressed from his rock, and Breg had perked up to observe his human drip water everywhere.  
Bilbo bit his lip, “if you say so, but let’s take it a little slower perhaps…?”  
“No!” The brunette shouted, “I have to get this right! If I can’t take you on in a fight what will I do in a real battle?!”  
Bilbo frowned, moving from the battle pose he had been taking, lowering his nearly raised hands, “what is that supposed to mean?” He understood perfectly of course, but he couldn’t deny the hurt he felt.  
The prince lowered his fists, his soggy hair dangling in front of his dark eyes, but Bilbo could still see the surprise and sudden worry there.  
Angry and upset Bilbo straightened up and got out of the pool, water bending the droplets from his person and letting them fall back into the water, holding his head up high.  
“Once you can appreciate me as a true mentor and formidable opponent,” Bilbo told the prince, “you can come and seek me out to start you training again. In the mean time, I suggest you practice that move, if not with water than with some other element.”  
Turning, he trudged past where Fili sat, paused briefly to stroke Breg’s head before walking away from the small cove entirely…   
To the hobbit’s surprise Erebor had a garden.  
The kitchens obviously used it some for vegetables and seasonings, but some flowers were nestled around the crowded area.  
Sitting on a small stone bench with his arms folded around his bent knees Bilbo stared at a bug as it examined a rose, feeling a bit useless.  
He wondered if he was really right to train the Avatar. He was not a great warrior who had knowledge of the world, and for once Bilbo resented that.  
Gandalf would have been better suited for the task of training the prince, but he wasn’t here, instead, he was off on some ridiculous errand for a lady elf who probably had more power than the wizard himself.  
Bilbo was so immersed in his thoughts he did not notice when another body sat down on the bench next to him with a thunk.  
“He didn’t mean it,” the figure said, startling the hobbit, “he just gets angry sometimes and says things he doesn’t mean. He’s very much like our uncle in that regard.”  
Bilbo turned and looked at Fili, the blonde haired dwarf staring out into the distance, “he wants to mend things right after they happen but I don’t think he understands that other people can stay mad for a great amount of time.” He turned his head to look at the water bender then, “are you one of those people Bilbo?”  
The hobbit bit his lip, “I don’t know…I just feel…like he was right.”  
Fili sucked in a breath, “it may be true you have not been in many battles, but that does not make you any less of a bender. I’ve never seen anyone water bend like you can, and I’m not easily impressed Hobbit.”  
Fili’s smile and speech reminded Bilbo of his uncle Thorin’s, and it made Bilbo smile just a little at the resemblance.  
“I’ll forgive him,” Bilbo said after a moment, “but I just want to rest for today. Training your brother is very tiring.”  
Fili laughed, the hearty sound invoking a smile from the hobbit beside him.  
After a few more minutes of comfortable silence Fili stood up, “come along Master Baggins,” he taunted, “join me for my training session. You’ll finally be able to see what I can do when I am bending.”  
Bilbo smiled, taking the offered hand, “that would be nice,” he said cheerfully, “I haven’t really seen you bend, so it should be interesting.”  
“That it should be,” the dwarf prince said mysteriously, a small smirk on his face, “that it should be…”  
Bilbo wondered what he was on about, but he followed anyway…  
They went to the training room that Bilbo had previously been privy too, but, instead of there being a young Avatar in the room there was instead a king that looked indignant as Bilbo followed Fili into the room.  
“What is he doing here,” Thorin asked his nephew, glancing between the two.  
“Relax Uncle,” the golden haired dwarf said reassuringly, “Master Bilbo just wanted to watch us train. Who knows, perhaps he will find the training to be…enlightening.”  
The two dwarves looked at each other, Thorin scowling, Fili wiggling his brows meaningfully.  
Bilbo ignored them both and sat down on a nearby wooden bench, settling down to watch the training, finally overcoming his surprise at Thorin being the one to be mentoring his nephew.  
“Enough,” Thorin finally grunted at the younger dwarf, “he can stay. Just make sure he doesn’t get in the way.”  
“I won’t,” Bilbo sourly said as he was talked about as though he were not even there.  
Fili ignored the hobbit and moved to put his belt and tunic on another bench, turning to his uncle afterwards and grinning, “hope you don’t embarrass yourself today Uncle.”  
Thorin snorted and moved into a fighting stance, the pressure on his feet light and nimble so that he could agilely move at a moment’s notice.  
Intrigued, Bilbo leaned forward, balancing his chin on a hand that was propped up by an elbow on his knee.  
Thorin and Fili looked at each other for a few moments, their similar eyes calculating as they inspected the others stance and looked for weak points.  
Then, Fili moved, just a muscle, but Thorin was on him, blasting fire from a well placed fist, making Fili jump back and shield himself with his forearms.  
Thorin advanced on him, giving a few quick bursts of flame as Fili backed himself into a corner, eyes wide and mouth open as he panted for breath, the heat obviously getting to him.  
“Concede to defeat,” Thorin said smugly as he kept up his posturing, dark hair draping over his shoulders and giving him a wild appearance.  
Fili smirked, suddenly moving his hand so that only his pointer and middle fingers were extended, “don’t count me out just yet Uncle.”  
Then, Bilbo experienced something he had never been party to. Lightning bending.  
The lighting coming from Fili’s outstretched fingers was amazing, like pure energy, and pure gold. Bilbo could feel it reflecting in his eyes and setting the air around them alight with ozone and heat.  
But, Bilbo then noticed, it was directed right at Thorin. Terrified, Bilbo jumped from his seat, opening his mouth to yell, to say something, anything, when Thorin moved himself, mirroring Fili’s stance and taking the lightning in hand, doing a move Bilbo had, once again, never seen. Thorin was redirecting the lightning.  
The energy was shot towards the ceiling, crashing against it with a deafening sound so that Bilbo had to cover his ears.  
The whole room went dark with smoke as the hit had scattered dust and the temperature was starting to lower from the lack of fire in the area.  
Blinking rapidly, Bilbo stared into the debris, jaw dropping when he finally saw the two.  
They stood grinning at each other, as though all of it had been in good sport, and Bilbo was left staring.  
“That-” he croaked out, “that was amazing!”  
The two paused from their low conversation to look at him.  
Fili grinned at him, “I told you that you would be impressed.”  
Bilbo laughed, “I’ve never seen lighting like that before…I’ve never seen lightning at all!” He turned to Thorin then, ignoring the frown, “and you redirecting it! It was incredible!”  
Thorin cleared his throat, hand going up to tug at the collar of his shirt, which didn’t really appear all that tight to the hobbit, “yes,” the king hummed, “well, good match Fili. We should do it again some time. Now, I must go and do some…duties.”  
He left without another word, hurrying out of the training room, leaving both Fili and Bilbo staring after him.  
Fili turned then to grin at the water bender, “I think that was worth skipping Kili’s practice, don’t you?”  
Bilbo nodded hurriedly, but couldn’t help thinking that they were talking about separate things…  
The rest of the day Bilbo spent hovering about the libraries and going through the halls as if a ghost.  
He was missing his home terribly, where there was usually something to read, or something to do. In Erebor he couldn’t even go to the kitchens at a moment’s notice for a snack.  
Erebor seemed large and dense to the hobbit and he put himself into a small nook that was in an off branch hallway where hardly anyone ventured.  
He was still feeling sorry for himself and wished to go home when a voice spoke to him.  
“Why,” the familiar hum crooned, “Bilbo Baggins, whatever is the matter?”  
Widening his eyes Bilbo quickly unfurled himself from his niche and stumbled out to see a certain wizard gazing impishly at him.  
“Gandalf!” The hobbit breathed, rushing forward to wrap his arms around the taller man, “when did you get back? I thought it would take you longer.”  
The wizard chuckled, patting the smaller water bender on the back, “come now Bilbo, I think you have some things to tell me.” His eyes twinkled merrily, and Bilbo chose to ignore his avoidance of the questions.   
Instead, he waved at the wizard, “we can go to the garden I recently discovered, you’ll like it.”  
“I have no doubts about that,” Gandalf reassured, hobbling along after him.  
Bilbo hummed in agreement, happy to be in the presence of one that reminded him of home without the sadness that accompanied it…  
The two sat in the gardens, Bilbo telling the wizard about the types of training he was putting Kili through, and how he was progressing.  
He left out the part where the prince had been injured, and when they had fought with each other.  
He commented on Fili’s ability to produce lightening, and he told of the new friends and acquaintances he had met so far.  
Gandalf smiled at him around the pipe he was smoking, puffing out playful rings of smoke, “its seems you have been busy without me,” he told the hobbit, “and I am quite glad for it.”  
“Are you going to come and train the Avatar now,” Bilbo asked, a bit concerned. He missed his home but he liked being busy here in Erebor.  
Gandalf raised a brow at him, taking a puff from his pipe, “whatever gave you that idea? I am still in the process of helping the Lady Galadriel, and she assures me I have a new task coming up.”  
Bilbo frowned, “what task?” He was on the edge of his seat, a bit concerned for his friend as he appeared to be overworked at the moment.  
Gandalf waved a hand at him, shaking off his worry, “it’s all fine Bilbo Baggins. I am a busy man and am often needed in two places at once, which is impossible. But rest assured, I will be staying in Erebor for days to come.”  
It was Bilbo’s turn to raise a brow, “oh? Is there some sort of business that will reach the mountain soon?”  
Gandalf grinned at him mysteriously, “perhaps. We shall see.”  
Annoyed, Bilbo huffed at the wizard, ignoring the answering chuckle and pulled out his own pipe for a quick smoke…  
That night at dinner Fili sat close to Bilbo, making up for the loss of Kili who did not appear the whole time.  
“Is he avoiding me,” Bilbo asked as the two enjoyed an extra pint in the quieting hall.  
Fili shook his head, “Uncle received word from the elves of Mirkwood,” the prince explained, “Kili is usually good with them, so Uncle wanted him there to see about delegations and such.”  
Bilbo mulled that over, wondering if that was what Gandalf had been talking about earlier. “Are they coming here?”  
Fili shrugged, his moustache sopping by the time he pulled away from his mug, “perhaps. Uncle did not say. He looked to angry for words at the time he called Kili to him. I believe that means they might be sending an emissary if not coming themselves.”  
Bilbo frowned, muttering into his cup, “they may have already…”  
Fili appeared to not have heard him, instead, he sank back into his drink, attention on it completely, giving Bilbo time to get up and wobble back to his rooms in peace…  
The next morning the whole castle appeared quieter and more subdued than usual.  
Glancing around near empty halls Bilbo wondered what could be amiss, and worried over it slightly.   
He hoped it wasn’t about Gandalf or elves…and, of course, it was.  
When Bilbo went into the great hall for a bit of breakfast he was nearly bowled over by the sound of shouting voices.  
Curious, he opened the door a tad and peaked in.  
The King, the Princes, Gandalf, the white haired dwarf, Balin, and the Captain of the Guard were all present, expressions dour.  
Only Balin seemed to notice his presence as he winked at the hobbit before turning to pay attention to his king and his ranting.  
“-Won’t stand for it,” Thorin yelled at the wizard, his face tinged red and his blue eyes stormy with anger, “they are not allowed here! We sighed their peace agreements and trade with them, isn’t that enough?!”  
Gandalf was grimacing, “you need to be more interactive with them. Treaties are generational, and I want the best for the line of Durin.”  
Thorin said something in Khuzdul that sounded unsavory, and must have been by the way Gandalf’s face became shuttered and dark.  
Balin stepped in then, peacefully putting up his hands to appease the two, “come now Thorin,” he said calmly, “you should at least hear the wizard out. We are in need of some supplies the elves usually distribute, and if we invite at least the prince to stay with us that should pacify them.”  
Gandalf nodded, but Thorin’s scowl deepened, “I will not have that…revolting elf prince in my halls again. It was bad enough having to house him when he was training Kili, but to have him as an emissary would be a torture I am not willing to endure.”  
Kili opened his mouth to say something, his brows lowered irritably, but his brother caught his arm, shaking his head smoothly at him.  
By this time Bilbo had snuck into the room completely, and was hiding near an old tapestry that was nearly eaten through with moth holes.  
“Just listen Thorin,” Gandalf demanded, “this is very important. Prince Legolas has convinced his father that the two of you should be allies, and even the Lady Galadriel agrees that this is vital.”  
Thorin crossed his arms, glowering petulantly, “why?”  
Gandalf blinked, momentarily stunned, “what?”  
“Why? Why is this of such import?” Thorin’s sulky tone reminded Bilbo of a fussy child, and he had to bit his lip in order not to laugh.   
Gandalf sighed, moving to lean heavily against the long table, looking over at Balin with a long-suffering grimace.  
The white haired dwarf moved forward confidently, laying a gentle hand on the king’s shoulder, “consider it lad,” he told the taller dwarf fondly, “this way, if we get into any trouble those elves will be bound by honor to help us.”  
Thorin growled, turning his face away, but at his angle Bilbo could see his eyes turn thoughtful and the snarl fade from his face.  
“You will send an invitation to the tree shagging prince,” he turned to glare at the wizard, “but if he does not come do not blame me.”  
Balin looked undoubtedly pleased with himself and Kili looked a bit excited as Gandalf nodded at the king, reaching for his nearby hat.  
“It will be done with the utmost haste,” Gandalf said, moving towards the door and past Bilbo without a glance, although he most assuredly knew he was there.  
Fili and Kili bowed to their uncle before following the wizard out, Fili’s light eyes glancing at the tapestry where Bilbo hid, but not remaining there for long.  
Then, they too were gone.  
“I like this not,” Thorin said as he put his hands on the table, bowing his head down.  
Dwalin snorted, but Balin patted the king on the back, “you don’t have to like it. You just have to survive it.”  
Thorin grumbled for a moment before moving towards one of the back entrances of the hall, the other two dwarves following him.  
When it was Balin’s turn to go through the door he paused and glanced back at Bilbo’s area, winking once more before tagging along after the other two dwarves.  
Once they were gone Bilbo moved from his hiding spot and turned on his heel, food didn’t sound as appealing as information did at the moment…  
Gandalf sat at his undersized desk, scrawling two quick letters to both the woodland elves, and to the Lady of Light.  
Sitting back in his uncomfortable chair Gandalf slowly blinked, recalling his time spent in Lorien with the Lady Galadriel…  
When he had arrived the she-elf had called to him, bidding him come forth, and they had met one another in a secluded area where a small well stood, the lady standing by it.  
“I have need for you,” Galadriel had told him, not even looking up into his cool eyes, “to learn a new form of bending.”  
Gandalf had swallowed heavily, leaning on his staff, “what form my lady?”  
She had turned to look at him then, a small serene smile gracing her thin lips, “blood bending.”  
Gandalf’s eyes had widened, “but, this form was forbidden many years ago…it is uncalled for now that darkened forces have given way to the light.”  
The elf had run her hand along the side of the well, “it is a difficult task to undertake, and blood bending can make you feel powerful and hungry for more.” She had turned to stare at him then, crystal lapis lazuli eyes seeking.  
I swore off of this bending eons ago, her voice had told him in his mind, but you must learn for the sake of all of us. I will teach you, so long as you use this power only for good.  
“Yes,” the wizard had choked out at the time, mouth dry and lips suddenly cracked.  
“Good,” the lady had said, a puzzling smile coming to her lips, “then we shall begin.”  
And so began the training of the master water bender Gandalf the Gray…  
Now, as Gandalf blinked himself from his memories he looked back down at the parchment he had been writing on.  
These letters were peace treaties in the making, and Gandalf felt that he was doing the right thing. But, that didn’t stop the uneasy feeling making it’s way through his stomach…   
Bilbo found that Gandalf had coincidently disappeared as he looked for him, so he gave up on looking for him at the moment and went to seek out Fili.  
The prince was in the training room, along with his brother, both of them sitting on a bench, muttering in low voices, but stopped when Bilbo opened the door.  
Kili turned his face away once he caught sight of him, but Fili flashed him a quick smile, “well, if it isn’t the hobbit,” he winked at the water bender, “quite a good job of staying hidden if you ask me. Almost didn’t notice you, if Balin hadn’t winked in the direction of a stray tapestry. Almost thought he had gone mad for a minute.”  
He waved Bilbo closer and the hobbit inched forward, glancing back and forth between the brothers.  
Fili noticed but didn’t comment on it, “I’m surprised Uncle let go of his argument without much of a fight. Usually he broods for days before coming up with a compromise.”  
Bilbo bit the inside of his cheek, “he seemed quite upset over it.”  
The crown prince waved a hand dismissively, “don’t worry about it. Uncle will get over it and may even apologize to Gandalf for his rude behavior.” He looked pointedly at his younger brother, “that is what people do when they are in the wrong after all.”  
Kili glanced up then, dark eyes miserable looking and Fili stood up, stretching his arms over his head, starting to walk away.  
“I have to go and see Uncle,” he said as he went past Bilbo, “he will want me to help prepare for the elves arrival.” He glanced back at the two, “play nice.” He winked, then was gone.  
Uncomfortable Bilbo chanced a peek at the Avatar and found him staring at him, lips slightly parted as he choked out something Bilbo couldn’t hear.  
Ruffled, Bilbo rubbed at his arm, “what?”  
“I’m sorry,” Kili said in a rush, “I didn’t mean what I said, I really didn’t! I just…I don’t know. I’m horrible and I’m sorry.”  
Surprising himself Bilbo laughed, “it’s fine Kili. I overreacted, and…well, partly, I was doubting myself. You just gave voice to my concerns and I thought they might have been true.”  
Kili had the face of a wounded puppy and began to protest but Bilbo held up a hand to cut him off, “but,” he said quietly, “I know you didn’t mean it. I might not be a warrior or anything like that, but I think I can defend myself well enough. I like training you Kili, and I hope that we can be friends again so that I can continue.”  
Kili stared openly at him for a moment before hopping up from his seat and enveloping Bilbo into a tight hug, crushing the air out of him.  
“You’re the best teacher yet,” the prince mumbled in the hobbit’s ear, “and I want to do right by you.”  
Bilbo patted the dwarf on the back, “there there. Let’s start again tomorrow and see what goes from there, alright?”  
Kili leaned back and grinned sweetly at him, in a toothy way, “of course,” he said, “I can’t wait.”  
Bilbo couldn’t help but feel inclined to agree…  
The next day it was just Bilbo and Kili at the cove, Breg wandering along later, Bilbo not wanting to know where he had been previously.  
Kili seemed to be understanding the water bending moves better now that he seemed to have some peace of mind, and Bilbo felt hope wrap around his anxious heart.  
“Look,” Kili shouted out excitedly, “I’m bending it Bilbo!”  
Amazed, Bilbo turned to watch from his spot on the sand as the young Durin bended a small bubble of water to move within his hands, Kili moving in a smooth stance.  
“Well done,” Bilbo cheered, watching the Avatar for a few more minutes as he victoriously moved the water, the orb precariously wobbling along with him before it was suddenly broken by a loud sound.  
Turning his head and glaring Bilbo watched as a dwarf on a pony emerged from over a nearby hill, a frantic look on his face.  
“Prince Kili,” he called out, clutching a scroll in his hand, “I have news that your mother has arrived at Erebor and is awaiting your arrival!”  
Kili stared, eyes going wide, “my mother…”  
Bilbo watched the Avatar as the air around them began to grow heavy and thick.  
Whatever that news meant to Kili Bilbo felt that it was not good…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Make sure to leave a comment if you feel like it!


	4. Part 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> ~Bilbo has the pleasure of meeting Fili and Kili’s mother, the Princess of Erebor. And while newly burdened with news of the elves coming Thorin and Bilbo somehow manage to get along for once…

Kili rushed out of the water, ignoring the retreating messenger in favor of grabbing Bilbo’s arm and the rest of his clothes.  
“Kili!” Bilbo shouted in protest, trying to catch the other’s attention, but instead, he found himself balanced on the back of a komodo rhino.  
“Ah!” Bilbo shrieked, trying to squirm off, but he was held tight as Kili climbed up behind him, tugging his shirt on and calling something out to Breg in the language of Erebor.  
Terrified, Bilbo grabbed hold of Breg’s saddle, clutching tightly to it as the creature stood and immediately began to run back to Erebor in a rush.  
“Kili,” Bilbo tried again, yelling back to the Avatar in the rush of wind, “what’s wrong? Why is your mother here?”  
“I don’t know,” the prince’s voice called, sounding far away in the wind, “but I haven’t seen her for months, I’m so excited!”  
Realizing that what the prince was experiencing was not, in fact, panic, Bilbo frowned, “you mean we’re rushing off in a hurry because you missed your mother so much that you could not stand another minute away from her?!”  
He could almost feel Kili’s blush.   
“Maybe,” the Avatar answered, digging his knee into Breg’s side to urge him faster, even though Bilbo could see the entrance to the mountain merely yards away.  
“That’s ridiculous!” The hobbit screeched, “you could have at least told me that before dragging me back all the way here and-look out!”  
Dwarves yelled and moved out of the way as quickly as they could as Kili steered his animal guide right into the halls of Erebor, completely ignoring the activity going on around him.  
“Come on Breg,” Kili shouted cheerfully, “take us to the throne room!”  
The animal grumbled back happily, skidding around corners to get them to the chosen room in a hurry.  
Bilbo closed his eyes, scared that he was going to be sick, and wrapped his fingers tighter around the loops of leather on the saddle.  
Soon, they arrived at their destination, the guards posted by the doors opening them in a hurry and flinging themselves out of the way just in time.  
Breg loped into the room with a few pleased pants then slid to a stop just before the stairs that led to the throne.  
“What,” a deep and angry voice growled out, “exactly, are you doing?”  
Another voice trilled after his, “I would like to know the same thing.”  
Kili fumblingly slithered off of his animal’s back, running up the stairs quickly, “Mother!”  
Though the female dwarf seemed aggravated she hugged the young male back, arms wrapped securely around him for a few moments before tugging him back to look at him.  
She frowned, “why are you wet?”  
Kili laughed, and went to answer, voice loud and joyful as Bilbo tuned him out to slide off of the komodo rhino and to look at the female.  
She was pretty, by dwarf standards, and had a rich looking, if thin, beard around her jaws and chin that was black and silky. Her face was not as angular as Thorin’s, but the hobbit could see the family resemblance there.  
She and Fili possessed the same color blue eyes, and she and Kili shared the same eye shape. Her dark wavy hair was pulled back from her face in a bun, and the rest trailed down her back with a few twisting braids.   
She took notice of Bilbo after a few minutes, her eyes flickering over to him quickly before glancing at the king.  
“Who is this brother,” she asked him, her feminine voice deep but in a pleasing way.  
Thorin grunted, “this is the new water bending master for Kili. He arrived here not long ago.” He seemed displeased about having to share the information and Bilbo wondered why.  
But, he did not have time to wonder long as the she-dwarf trailed down the stairs at a quick pace, coming to stop in front of him, her pale eyes examining.  
“I’m Princess Dis,” she said with a finality that would not be challenged, “I’m Fili and Kili’s mother, and the sister of that lout over there.” She gestured to Thorin who sputtered and turned red.  
Bilbo bit his lip to hold back a chuckle, but the princess caught it anyway and the corners around her eyes crinkled.  
“I think we may yet just get along,” Dis told him, self-assuredly tilting her head back, putting a hand on her hip in the same manner that her brother did.  
“We might,” Bilbo agreed, smiling at her.  
It might have been just him, but Thorin looked even more annoyed at this new direction of things…  
That night at dinner Bilbo sat by Dis, listening intently to her stories about her sons, and her life in the Blue Mountains, along with some amusing tales of her childhood with Thorin.  
“A proper hothead he was,” Dis recalled fondly as she guzzled down the rest of her ale, “always running around causing trouble, blowing things up, setting my favorite dresses on fire. As a non-bender I couldn’t duel him properly, but Father saw to it that he was taken care of.” She laughed a bit, blue eyes glazed over from too much drink.  
Bilbo smiled along with her, glancing over at Thorin who had an unhappy grimace on.  
“I remember you taking justice into your own hands,” the king said grumpily, crossing his arms, “you would try to stab me with my own practice sword.”  
Bilbo hid a laugh behind his head, but Dis outright laughed in her brother’s face, “now that you mention it,” she said happily, “I do recall that.” She took another gulp from her goblet, emptying it at last, then wobbled to her feet, ignoring her brother’s steadying outstretched hand. “I think I’m a bit drunk,” she told them, wiping at her mouth with the back of a bejeweled hand, “I think I’ll retire now.”  
Both Thorin and Bilbo watched her sway away, gathering her two boys before guiding them from the hall.  
Bilbo took a quick drink from his own cup, aware that it was just he and the king at the end of the table now.  
After clearing his throat he spoke awkwardly, “she’s a lovely dwarf,” he told the king, “quite spirited.”  
Thorin smiled just a bit at that, eyes lighting up, “yes,” he agreed quietly, “she always has had a great strength.” He glanced at the hobbit then, eyes searching, “I have not seen her smile like that in many years.”  
Bilbo gulped, fingers tightening around his goblet, “oh?”  
The king nodded, looking down into his cup, “after her husband died I thought she would simply fade away, much like elves do. But, she tried to go on, for her sons.” He looked back up at Bilbo then, “my heart is gladdened to see her smile again. Thank you.”  
The water bender was shocked. “Y-you don’t have to thank me,” he stammered out quickly, “I imagine that she is happy to be back home and see her boys.”  
Thorin continued to stare at him, “perhaps,” he inclined his head a bit, “but she has seen much pain and misery in these halls, along with some happy times. I think it may be the company that gives her that joyful glow.”   
He stood then, adjusting his furred robe before nodding at the water bender, “good night Bilbo. Peaceful dreams.”  
Bilbo watched with wide eyes as the king retreated to the secret door he had used previously, a guard falling into step beside him.  
After a minute Bilbo decided that he had no idea what had just happened…but he thought that the king may have just been a bit more kind to him…   
The next morning found Bilbo and Kili with a larger audience than usual.  
Dis had insisted on coming to her son’s practice, and Fili sat nervously by her side as they shared a large boulder by the pool’s side.  
Breg had mysteriously disappeared with Dis’s presence, and Bilbo didn’t know if he should be worried about that or not.  
“I think we should try the water whip today,” Bilbo told his student, trudging into the water behind the Avatar who had an anxious look on his face.  
“Alright…” Kili said, biting his bottom lip, “how does it go?”  
Bilbo instructed him quickly, not moving himself, “take a fighting stance,” he said, “and position your hands so that they are slightly spread, but your elbows are still semi-close to your sides.”  
Kili obeyed, his legs a bit wobbly, something which Bilbo ignored for the time being.  
“Now,” he said sternly, “I want you to try and pull the water towards you quickly, and in a thin shape. The water whip is supposed to be a quick defense motion to deter others from coming to close.”  
“Kind of like a Shirshu’s tongue when it lashes out,” Kili provided, perking up.  
Bilbo nodded his head, “exactly,” he smiled a little at his pupil, then motioned with a hand, bending the water to make a small ice tower.  
“With the water whip I want you to slash the tower down,” he told the brunette, “this will help you work on speed and accuracy.”  
Kili nodded, his brows furrowed before he went back into position, his stance strong and his limbs in perfect order.  
Then, he took a deep breath and narrowed his eyes, bending the water with such swiftness and ease that Bilbo widened his eyes, watching, unblinking, as Kili bended the water into a whip and cracked it against the tower, cutting it into two pieces.  
As the pieces fell down Kili lowered the water, staring in disbelief before glancing up at Bilbo who was grinning widely at him.  
“Well done!” The water bender praised, clasping his hands together, “you perfected it in one try! I’m so proud!”  
Kili smiled then, turning to look at his brother and mother.   
Fili was perched on the edge of his seat, a grin on his face while Dis smirked, her eyes shining.  
“I want you to do it again,” Bilbo said as he nearly skipped out of the water, “practice makes perfect, and I want to make sure you’ve got this move.”  
Kili nodded, his face still proud, and turned back to the water, bending it and using the move over and over again.  
Bilbo went over to sit next to the other two, Dis bending over slightly to speak to him.  
“Good work,” she said lowly, “I haven’t seen Kili this excited over learning bending since he first found out he was the Avatar.”  
Bilbo gave a boyish grin, “he’s a natural,” he told the female dwarf, “he’s a great student, and I like teaching him.”  
Dis shook her head, “you are a wonder Bilbo Baggins.”  
Before Bilbo could ask what she meant she was leaning away, going back to watching her youngest child at work and completely absorbed.  
Bilbo pursed his lips but did the same, silently filing away the conversation for later…  
After their practice Bilbo and Kili stayed by the water pool, the prince’s brother and mother going back to the castle to help their king with some important matters.  
“I can’t believe Uncle still holds such a grudge towards the elves,” Kili said as he chewed on a piece of long grass, his arms behind his head, serving as a pillow as he stared up at the sky above them.  
“Why does he hate them?” Bilbo asked as he leaned back against his hands, watching the Avatar closely.  
Kili sighed, “it was back in the day when Uncle Thorin was trying to take back our ancient homeland, he was battling the white Orc Azog the Defiler. Uncle asked the elves for help, but they refused him. They didn’t think it wise to attack such a great hoard of Orcs, not when Uncle already had Erebor back in his charge.”  
Bilbo furrowed his brows, “but the dwarves won the battle, did they not? And Thorin proved his bending abilities in that battle, he bended lava to save his father.”  
Kili looked over at him, smirking, “you have done your research Master Baggins.” He turned away then, eyes narrowed suddenly, “yes. We won the battle. But we lost my grandfather, and Thorin was brought to the throne with a heavy cost and a marred heart. He holds the elves responsible for Grandfather’s death, and I can understand that.” He took away the grass, glancing back at Bilbo momentarily, “but, I don’t think he should blame those that had no control over the issue. It was King Thranduil who gave the order not to attack alongside our army, so if anyone is to blame it is he.”  
Bilbo did not exactly know whether or not to agree with that statement so he kept silent, staring into the distance.  
“Do you think they will accept Thorin’s invitation and come to Erebor,” the water bender asked the brunette after a few more moments.  
The Prince’s shrug could almost be heard in his answer, “most likely. They love to see what Uncle has been up to, and they sometimes want to make peace. It depends on their king’s mood.”  
Much like yours, Bilbo thought, but he stayed quiet, instead soaking up the information that Kili had just provided him with…  
All of the Durins were absent from dinner that night, and Bilbo found himself missing the presence of the royal family.  
“Hello Mister Baggins,” a cheerful voice chirped out to the water bender and he found himself turning to stare.  
There, with a smile on his face, stood the dwarf that had dropped paint on Bilbo all that time ago. Bofur.  
Bilbo did his best to smile back, but felt that it wasn’t as good as it should have been, “hello Bofur. I wasn’t sure we would see each other again after such a long time.”  
The dwarf looked pleased that the hobbit had remembered his name and sat on the edge of the bench closest to Bilbo.  
“I was looking for you,” Bofur said, stealing a goblet from a dwarf near to him. “I was hoping that we could spend some time together. I’d like to get to know you better.”  
Bilbo felt a little uncomfortable at that, thinking he might have just been propositioned.  
“Oh,” he stammered out after a moment, “that would…um…I-”  
He was still searching for an answer when the door to the hall slammed open, an angry looking dwarf king entering from it.  
“Out,” he roared, brows lowering, “all of you!”  
Bilbo quickly got to his feet, nearly tripping over the boots of a retreating dwarf, but before he could escape from the entrapment of his seat he was called out.  
“All except you hobbit,” Thorin snarled, though he wasn’t looking at Bilbo, more like he was looking at the back of Bofur as he left.  
Worried, Bilbo sat back down, watching as Thorin went to pace by the great fire roaring in the middle of the hall.  
Fili and Kili came to sit by Bilbo, their faces drawn while their mother went to stand behind the king’s usual seat, taking a cup full of wine and guzzling it down.  
“What’s this all about,” Bilbo whispered to Fili, who was closest, but, before the prince could answer Thorin did so, obviously hearing him.  
“The elves have agreed to enter Erebor,” the king sneered, “and they see it fit to take Kili with them once they leave.”  
Bilbo frowned, “that’s ridiculous, why would they do that?”  
Dis answered this time, pausing in her attempts to drain the mountain of spirits, “the elves feel that the Lady of Light should take over my son’s training, and that he should be among those who understand the Avatar, as the last one was from their race.”  
It was true, the last Avatar had been a rare earth bending elf who had almost been considered an outcast among his people. Glorfindel had only been glorified after his death, but his story had been a great tale across Middle Earth.  
“But,” Bilbo said, a little confused, “how would that possibly help Kili? He’s progressing well in his studies, and he seems more comfortable when he is among friends and family.”  
Thorin glanced at the water bender, pausing in his stride, then resumed after a moment, “they think that you are not an able teacher,” he said bluntly, staring into the fire, which was surprisingly calm for having an angry fire bender by it.  
“What,” Bilbo spat out, annoyed now, his fingers digging into the grainy wood of the table, “and who do they suppose is a better teacher?!”  
“Lord Elrond,” Dis said to him, eyes shadowed, “or the Lady Galadriel herself. They have not decided yet, but seem confident that the issue will be resolved soon.” Her tone was mocking as she glanced at her youngest son, who’s face was pale.  
“I don’t want another teacher,” the brunette said quietly, “I like Bilbo, he understands me.” His eyes were like liquid as he looked up at the water bender, and Bilbo thought that his heart might break.  
Thorin turned back to look at them all, “Gandalf has left, and promised me that he will talk to the elves and give them council.” The king didn’t look very reassured or trusting at that, but he at least had let the wizard go, it seemed.   
“But,” Bilbo said slowly, “what if Gandalf cannot help the issue, what if he cannot make the elves see reason?”  
Thorin looked back into the flames near his feet, “I do not know Halfling…hopefully it will not come to that.”  
Their small group was quiet again after those whispered words, and Bilbo couldn’t bring himself to look up at any of them…  
The next morning found Bilbo at the cove with no Avatar.  
Frowning, and thinking that maybe Kili was busy with preparations for the elves’ arrival he walked back to the castle, thoughts consuming him until he bumped into someone in his path.  
Startled, he looked up, staring straight into smoky blue eyes that were tinged with worry.  
“Hobbit,” the king said as he stared down at the water bender, “have you seen my nephew?”  
Confused, Bilbo shook his head slowly, “I thought they were both with you. Kili didn’t show up for practice.”  
Thorin clenched his jaw then, Bilbo seeing the ticking muscle there.  
“Kili did not attend breakfast this morning either,” the dwarf said quietly, almost to himself, “I thought he might have been sulking, but Fili said he was not in his room or in any of his usual hiding places.”  
Bilbo’s eyes widened, assuming the worse, “do you think…do you think he ran away?! He was so upset over the elves yesterday, what if he tried to leave to escape their jurisdiction?!”  
Thorin blinked at him, “any other time I would tell you that you are being an absurd little creature…but now…” He turned on his heel, reaching back to grab onto Bilbo, tugging him along, “we need to assign a search party for him,” the king said as they loped back to the castle, the water bender doing his best to ignore the warm grip on his wrist…  
Dis looked terrified as Thorin called a small council together: Fili, his mother, Dwalin, Balin, and the king and Bilbo.  
“Why would he run away,” the princess asked, her eyes wide and fingers gripping tightly onto the arm of her other son, “I’ve always taught him that running away from his problems will never help.”  
“He’s frightened,” Balin told her calmly, “he is young and still impressionable. He does not know what to do, so running away seemed the best option for him.”  
“It matters not,” Thorin growled out, “we need to fan out and search for him!”  
Dwalin grunted at that, “but how can we possibly know where he went?”  
“Breg!” Fili suddenly crowed, eyes going huge, “we can use Breg! Kili left him behind in his rush, and maybe Breg can track him down!”  
“Yes,” Bilbo agreed, clasping his hands together, “we can split up when Breg leads us on the right path and see if we can find him then.”  
Thorin nodded, “alright,” he said, “fetch the beast and meet back here in twenty minutes!”  
They split up quickly, Bilbo going with the crown prince to fetch Kili’s animal guide.  
“Do you really think this will work,” he asked the blonde, struggling to keep up with his long strides.  
“Let’s hope so,” the prince said, face shuttered, “Kili has an awful reputation for getting into trouble, and not being able to get himself out of it without help.”  
Bilbo bit his lip, “well, hopefully we will find him before anything like that happens.”  
Fili’s nod was the only indication that he had even heard the hobbit’s words…  
Breg was furiously struggling against Fili’s hold as he led them across the rocky hills near Erebor.  
“Calm down!” The prince told the komodo rhino, gripping the reins tighter.  
“No,” Bilbo called out, watching the way the creature’s nostrils flared, “let him loose, I think he’s caught a scent!”  
Fili did as he was told, and had to hold on for dear life as Breg lurched forward, bursting into a loping stride, running across the sand towards a gaping cave up ahead.  
The company followed, keeping up as best as they could before stopping just outside of the cave, just like Breg had, the creature pacing back and forth, tail lashing out.  
“The tunnels of old,” Balin breathed out next to Bilbo, “these tunnels are so dark not even the bravest fire bender dares to venture here in fear of their light going out for good.”  
Thorin set his jaw, “Kili dared, and so shall we.”  
He turned back to the group, “Dis, you and Fili take the beast and see if there is another opening around here anywhere. You three will come with me. We are going in.”  
Bilbo bit the inside of his cheek as he watched the princess and her son ride off.  
“We will have to split up,” Balin told the king, “these tunnels are multiple, and they require strategy.”  
Thorin thought for a moment before going and gesturing to Dwalin who produced a few torches out of the pack that he had brought.  
Taking one in hand Thorin lit it with his bending, handing it to the white haired dwarf, “we will split up in the tunnels,” he said quietly.  
“You and your brother will go together while I take the hobbit. We will find Kili this way if it takes the rest of this moon.”  
Balin nodded serenely, but Bilbo could still see the fear in his eyes.  
“Come,” Thorin said, “if Kili is brave enough to go into these cursed tunnels I will not have it said that the King of Erebor is not.”  
Then, with that, he stepped into the darkness of the cave…  
It was as if all the sunlight had faded from the world.  
The tunnels were darker than any bottomless abyss and Bilbo kept touching the flask at his waist in reassurance.  
Thorin’s bended fire was the only available light in the dark as the other two dwarves had taken the torches with them.  
The two groups had split up near the beginning of the caves, two tunnels winded through the mountainside it seemed.  
“Keep up Halfling,” Thorin told him from up ahead, Bilbo noticing that he had fallen behind a bit.  
“D-Do you think Kili’s alright,” Bilbo asked as he hurried his pace along, coming up just behind the king once more.  
“He is a capable warrior,” the king said sternly, the flame in his hand twisting and casting shadows around them.  
Bilbo gulped, licking his dry lips, “but…he is still just a boy…he is much too young to have such burdens.”  
The water bender nearly ran into Thorin’s back as the dwarf abruptly stopped, turning and glaring down at Bilbo.  
“You worry too much for him,” the king said, face nearly hidden in darkness, “Kili knows what he must do, and he is prepared for it completely!”  
“Then why did he run away?” Bilbo asked, straightening up to his full height, which wasn’t really much.  
Thorin stared down at him, silent for a minute before hoarsely asking, “why do you care for him so?”  
Bilbo stiffened, glancing down into the darkness where his feet were, “he…reminds me of someone I know. Someone I love.”  
He could almost sense Thorin’s frown, “a lover?”  
Bilbo laughed at that, picturing the king’s scowl, “no, no. My nephew back home. Frodo. They are both innocent, both so young. Too young.” He looked up at the king fiercely, “they hold many burdens on their shoulders. Frodo may not be the Avatar, but he still tastes what it is like to hold responsibility. He keeps my home and his, as he is orphaned.”  
Their eyes met, and Bilbo found he could not look away, “they are both so alone.”  
Thorin stared back at him, not blinking, “speaking from experience Halfling?”  
Bilbo couldn’t help but feel that they were closer, the flame in Thorin’s open palm settled between their chests, which were merely inches apart.  
“I know how they feel,” he finally answered, feeling the dwarf’s breath fanning over his face.  
“So do I,” the king breathed before Bilbo watched him move closer, eyelids slipping closed as Thorin’s lips closed over his, the flame going out between them when the hand holding it dropped.  
Their lips had barely touched when a voice called out, “what are you two doing?”  
Startled, Bilbo jerked back, as though he had been stung by something, looking over in the direction from where the voice had come from.  
There, enveloped in a green light stood Kili, his bangs hanging in his eyes as he observed them, eyes thoughtful.  
Confused by the light Bilbo looked up, noticing that Thorin did the same.  
There, on the ceiling, sprouted jade like crystals, glowing in the darkness.  
“Oh,” Bilbo breathed, “how beautiful.”  
“The tunnels aren’t cursed with darkness,” Kili said, his voice echoing a bit, “the trick is to not bring light in at all. The cave makes light on its own.”  
Thorin stared at the crystals, his voice reverent, “the gems shine in the darkest of shadows.”  
Kili smiled, “yes. Now, what are you two doing here?” His hands were on his hips, as though he had caught them in the act of stealing or some other awful act.  
“We were looking for you,” Thorin growled out, finding himself again as he strode forward, taking hold of his nephew’s shoulders.  
Bilbo was scared that he would hit the lad, but was surprised to find that Thorin simply brought their foreheads together in a light bump, the affection on the king’s face obvious.  
“Don’t do that again,” he told the younger dwarf, holding him close.  
“Yes Uncle,” Kili said quietly, voice watery as his eyes closed, taking in the closeness and warmth of his kin.  
Bilbo watched the scene for a moment before turning away, the lights of the crystals shining above him lighting the way back to the entrance of the cave…  
When they made it back to the entrance of the tunnels Balin and Dwalin were there waiting for them.  
“We found out the secrets of the tunnels,” Balin said happily as he watched them approach, “as you did too apparently.”  
Thorin grunted and walked past them, allowing for his nephew to stop and see the other two dwarves before the sound of a heavy stride approached.  
“You little idiot!” The feminine shout echoed around the cave as Dis jumped off of the back of the komodo rhino, her arms outstretched as she caught her youngest child in her embrace.  
He hugged her back before looking at his brother over her shoulder, winking.  
Fili shook his head at his brother, arms crossed sternly, before looking at his uncle.  
“Uncle,” he said quietly, “I’m afraid that we saw something while we were looking for any other entrances into the tunnels.”  
Thorin frowned, “what? What was it?!”  
Fili’s own scowl deepened, “the elves,” he said, “they arrived early.”  
Bilbo could only gulp as Thorin’s face grew darker and darker…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading!


	5. Part 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> ~Now that Kili is back with his family the dwarves and their resident hobbit face bigger problems as the elves have arrived in Erebor and seemed determined to clarify some things…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you're enjoying this story so far! Please read on and enjoy!

“I don’t want them to take me away,” Kili whispered in Bilbo’s ear as they trudged back towards Erebor.  
“I know,” the hobbit murmured back, reaching back to squeeze the Avatar’s hand as the castle’s gates came into view.  
Scattered before the gates in a hastily made line was an entourage of elves, their fine horses giving them an even higher advantage from the ground, and Bilbo felt entirely too small as they walked ever closer.  
Bilbo glanced at his companion’s, gauging their reactions to the presence of their supposed ally.  
From atop Breg’s back Dis watched the parade of elves with narrowed eyes, her hands tight on the animal’s saddle.   
Fili had an indecipherable look upon his face, but his skin was ashen and his blue eyes shining.  
Balin appeared neutral, but his brother and the king both had scowls upon their faces as though they were too close to an unbearable stench.  
Behind Bilbo Kili cowered, though he would have denied it, his expression fearful as he hung onto the water bender’s hand.  
“Their king is not with them,” Kili told the hobbit, staring straight at the head of the line of elves, “but Legolas is.”  
Prince Legolas. The one that had taught Kili his air bending.   
They now came close enough to shout to one another, and Thorin did just that.  
“You are early Prince Legolas,” he yelled, snarled, the title spat out as though it were a curse.  
“My apologies King Thorin,” a high voice called back in the same manner, but with more of a playful tone, “we thought it best to come early and discuss the issues of Rivendell and Lothlorien with you.”  
That gave Thorin pause, and he hurried his stride so that he was soon over the last hill and able to glare into the eyes of the elf prince.  
“How do you know of this?” He questioned the prince, but the elf would not answer.  
“Let us discuss this in a private area,” he said, ordered, looking away from the king and back towards the mountain.  
Thorin frowned but nodded. Then, he turned towards Dwalin, Bilbo just within hearing distance to hear the king say to him, “take the other elves and give them food and rooms. I will not have it said that Erebor is not hospitable.”  
The guard nodded and moved to do as he was bid, taking his brother with him.  
“Stay with me,” Kili hissed into Bilbo’s pointed ear as they watched the king stride towards his kingdom’s entrance.  
“Yes,” Bilbo said back, watching the blonde elf prince follow, “of course.”  
They watched together as the two royals disappeared inside the mountain…  
Gandalf had left Erebor in a rush when he heard of the plans to take Kili away from his family.  
He believed that the Avatar would help bring balance to the world, but taking him away from his loved ones was not the right way to achieve that dream.  
So, he had done as Thorin had bid and gone to talk to the Lady Galadriel and her son in law.  
Unfortunately, the wizard was still on the road when he came across them.  
The Lady of Lorien and Lord Elrond were traveling together with an entourage worthy of their stations, and Gandalf found himself alone against their large party.  
He had been brought before them though, in a private audience, hoping to convince them to not take action against the Avatar and snatch him like a babe from a cradle.  
The Lady Galadriel was as brilliant as ever as Gandalf met them by a secluded pond, the sound of the nearby waterfall covering up their secretive words.  
“Please,” he pleaded, “do not take Avatar Kili away from those who influence him and encourage him the most. It would be seen as a slight against the kingdom of Erebor and the dwarves in general, and they would never forget it.”  
“King Thorin would never forget it you mean,” Lord Elrond said, his silver eyes cutting as he glanced away from the water and towards the wizard.  
“Yes,” Gandalf breathed out, “he would not forget it, and would wage war against all elves to see his nephew safely returned home.”  
“Not all of the elves support this plan,” the Lady of Light suddenly cut in, her low voice soothing in spite of the circumstances. “Thranduil is against this plan, as he knows the spite of Thorin Oakenshield, and will ally himself with him against our plans.”  
This surprised Gandalf immensely, and he found no words worthy of his thoughts.  
Elrond looked as surprised with the Lady’s words as the wizard was, “what do you mean?” He asked, voice verging on angry.  
Galadriel looked over at him, her pale eyes full of starlight, “The woodland king feels that he has served his part in this cycle of the Avatar, and has no right to intervene anymore with his training and growth.”  
“Preposterous,” Elrond spat, shoving a hank of his dark silken hair aside.  
“This is how he feels,” the she-elf said, turning around again, her back towards them.  
The wizard water bender still felt out of balance though, “please,” he said once more, “leave Erebor in peace, and leave this Avatar alone…you know what happened to the last one…”  
Elrond’s eyes cut over to him then, “how dare you?! We did what we had to!” He stood then, crossing his arms and pacing along the bank of the pond, “Glorfindel was my friend…his end was painful and a shame.”  
Gandalf frowned at that, “it was also murder.”  
Elrond stopped his pacing, bringing a hand up to bite down on the knuckles in pain, tears filling his eyes.  
Galadriel looked over her shoulder at the wizard, “what was done was out of necessity.”  
“Blood bending is not a necessity!” Gandalf shouted, jumping to his feet angrily.  
“Stop!” Elrond yelled back, collapsing against a nearby boulder, “just stop…I have mourned the loss of my friend for all these years…but my wife’s mother did what she thought was right…what had to be done…” He looked up again, eyes cold steel, “and she is doing it again. Avatar Kili will be taken to Rivendell to learn water bending, and he will be the champion of Middle Earth as he was destined to be.”  
Gandalf’s mouth dropped down a bit as he moved back, staring at the two elves, watching the gleam in their eyes. It was matching.  
Somewhere along the way, the wizard thought as he backed away unnoticed, the line of elves had been tainted, as well as their very hearts and minds…  
Thorin did not much like elves, in fact, it could even be said that he hated them.  
But, he was willing to hear this particular one out as he was a friend of his nephew’s, and seemed not to be too completely stuck up.  
Legolas stood before him, looking out of a window as Thorin sat at the head of the table in the great hall, all of the doors closed for their privacy.  
“My father sent me,” the prince said as he glanced over at the dwarf king with his light eyes. “He wants to be in your good graces again.”  
Thorin grunted, amused, “what does he want this time?”  
The elf strode away from the window to stand near the edge of the table, “he wants you to know that he is against the Lady Galadriel’s plan to take Kili away from you. He feels that it is unjust, and something he would never wish upon himself, or any other.”  
Thorin crossed his arms, narrowing his eyes, “why does he want me to know this? Does he think this will change anything between us?”  
Legolas shrugged insolently, “I don’t know. But I do know that he finds the woodland air benders separate from the water benders that plan to take away the Avatar.”  
The king leaned forward, “is Thranduil willing to help me?”  
The prince stared back at him, “again,” he said, “I don’t know.” He smiled then, “but I plan to. Kili is my friend, along with my former pupil, and I think that being pried away from all that you know is too cruel a fate for anyone.”  
Thorin bit the inside of his cheek, looking down at the table for a moment before glancing back up at the prince, “then, tell me, what do you plan to do about all this?”  
Legolas pursed his lips, “I don’t plan on doing anything. Those who come and plan to conquer often find themselves outwitted by the elements, and hopefully that is what will happen here.” He turned away to go back to the window, “tell me, do you remember what happened to the last Avatar?”  
Thorin nodded, but let the elf go on and tell his story to prove his point.  
“Avatar Glorfindel stood up to those who he thought preyed on the weak and helpless. He found himself facing down many enemies, including Balrogs and Orcs alike. Such foes seemed easy to defeat compared to others…but Glorfindel had yet to face his worst enemy.” The prince paused, running his agile fingers along the window’s glass.  
Then, he continued, “Glorfindel journeyed back home to Rivendell as you know, to be reunited with his love…but along the way he was met by a pack of rogue Orcs. They should have been easy to defeat…but they were joined with a powerful wizard. Sauroman the White. He put a spell on the Avatar, and made him lose his mind…he started killing those all around him. He neither recognized friend from foe.”  
Thorin watched the elf rub at his own arm, where he knew the famous scar lay from where the last Avatar had tried to kill the prince.  
“Glorfindel reached Rivendell,” Legolas told, “and he went on a killing spree of the highest mass. Lord Elrond battled him, as he was the greatest water bender in the whole house, but he was nearly beaten. Glorfindel would have killed him if the Lady Galadriel had not arrived just in time. Together, she and Elrond defeated him. She used the outlawed technique of blood bending to drown the Avatar…and Elrond was the one that bended the water that Glorfindel took into his lungs.”  
“Yes,” Thorin said, getting impatient now, “and the Avatar’s love came home to find that Glorfindel had been killed.”  
“Erestor faded away when he found out about his beloved’s murder,” Legolas murmured, not even looking at the dwarf, “but before he died he learned a very valuable lesson.”  
Thorin narrowed his eyes and forced himself not to clench his teeth, “what?”  
The elf looked at him then, eyes dark, “that those who you can normally trust may just betray you in the end. And those who seemed the most unlikely of allies may prove to be the most loyal.”  
Thorin sighed, “the Lady Galadriel has proven that Elves are untrustworthy creatures.”  
Legolas looked at him slyly, “yes, but some are more untrustworthy than others. So which is the lesser evil here?”  
The dwarf stared at the prince for a few moments in silence, the sound of the fire crackling and popping around them the only noise. Then, “tell me then. What would you have me do?”  
The elf prince grinned fiercely…  
Bilbo sat with the two princes in the training room, all of them worried about the elves arrival, and what it entailed.  
Biting his lip, Bilbo tried to think of a way to pass the time, then, it came to him.  
Looking at the two young dwarves near him the hobbit asked, “do you two know the story of the creation of benders?”  
Kili huffed a sigh, his back pressed to his brother’s side, his eyes turned towards the wall, “of course. All dwarrows are told the tale when we are young. A fish and a dragon fell in love, they were discriminated against because of their romance, and many despised them. A plot came to them from the mouth of a friend, saying that the nearby king was planning to kill them both, to show that such strange love was forbidden. But, instead, the fish and dragon were able to escape with the help of some of their friends. They went to the heavens, where their love was not frowned upon, and they soon became the moon and sun. With their newfound forms they gave their friends the power of bending the elements, as a token of their gratitude and eternal affection towards them.”  
Bilbo blinked, “I haven’t heard that tale before…in the Shire we have a much different story…but with the same principle.”  
Fili looked up at him, pausing in his attempts to sharpen his knife, “what is it?” The prince asked and the water bender smiled indulgently at them, settling down further to tell them.  
“Once,” he began, “a human and Elf fell in love with each other. The Elf was a beautiful daughter of a powerful lord, and the Man was a kind hearted soul who was the son of a lowly farmer. The two met one day in the woods and fell in love. Their families disapproved of their love, you see, and did everything to stop them from being together. But, the love between the two was too strong for such hatred, and the Elf and Man found a way to be together. They prayed to a generous sky spirit for help, and their prayer was answered. They were taken up into the heavens, so that they could be together. They took the form of the Moon and Sun, which as you know makes water benders and fire benders more powerful. But, down below, their families wept, seeing the wrong they had done. They prayed to the heavens for the return of their lost children, but the Elf and Man could not return. In their stead, they sent their children down to Middle Earth, whom were benders of the four elements. The children were loved and cared for by the Elves and Men alike, and, in time, new benders came from their blood line and spread to all of Middle Earth.”  
Bilbo glanced at the two princes, and found them staring back.  
“Why did they send their children away,” Kili asked, a frown on his face, “if they really loved them they would have never given their children to the very people who drove them away!”  
Bilbo thought for a moment, “they did love their children…” he said slowly, “but they also loved their lost families, even though they had tried to tear them apart. Such love is hard to break from and forget I suppose.”  
“But how could their children be benders,” Fili asked, setting down his dagger, “the Elf and Man were not even benders themselves.”  
Bilbo bit the inside of his cheek, wondering if his story may have been taken to literally, “well,” he finally said, “the Moon and Sun represent water and fire, and their place in the heavens made an air bender, and I suppose their love for their families produced an earth bender.”  
The two dwarves didn’t look convinced but took the information in stride.  
“I still would not have forgiven my family if they drove me away from the one I love…from where I belong…” Kili’s eyes looked watery, and Bilbo watched as the golden haired prince squeezed his brother’s hand discreetly.  
Perplexed, Bilbo furrowed his brow, watching the two for a few minutes before realizing.   
Fili and Kili had been sent away from their homes to learn bending long ago. Dis was from the Blue Mountains, and that seemed an awfully long way from Erebor. It made sense that Kili would see such betrayal in the old legend.  
“You know,” Bilbo said as he shuffled closer, “even when someone leaves someone else behind they never forget about them…it may hurt to say goodbye, but they’ll always be with you…as long as you think about them and remember the good times you had with them.”  
Kili glanced up at him, brown eyes shiny, but he sniffled, “you’re right.”  
Bilbo simply smiled…  
Dis was not a patient woman by any means.  
And having to sit outside while her brother talked to some Elf prince did not help matters at all…alright, so she wasn’t sitting, she was pacing, but it was the same principle.  
“What is taking so long?!” She growled out to Balin who sat nearby, looking over a piece of parchment that seemed to be on mining.  
“Thorin is just consulting the Prince,” the white haired dwarf reassured the female dwarf, not even looking up from his reading, “this is an important time to consider who is your ally, and who is not.”  
Dis turned on her heel to glare at him, “the Elves have never been our allies! They lie and cheat, and they mislead you when you thought that you could count on them for help! Why would you possibly think that we could trust this one?!”  
Balin looked up at her then, expression closed off, “Prince Legolas has helped us in the past. He provided Kili with an air bending teacher, and he was a friend to the boy when he needed it most.”  
Dis rolled her eyes, “Fili is a friend to Kili, they are extremely close.”  
Balin shook his head, “Legolas was there when Kili had to talk about things that concerned someone that he and Fili both knew very well. Someone who broke a promise to them both.”  
Dis froze once again in her pacing, her back to the advisor.  
“Me,” she breathed out, “Kili had to talk to someone about me…”  
“Yes,” Balin answered, “you promised that you would come and live in Erebor to see Kili finish his training. And you did not. He was distraught about it when you sent the letter to Thorin saying you could not come.”  
Dis remembered that well.  
She had indeed promised her sons that she would move back to her childhood home to be with them. But, it was too painful at the time.  
Her husband had just died not too many years ago, and the anniversary of his death was coming back around to haunt her.  
She longed for her children, but her soul grieved for her deceased partner, and she could not leave his grave behind to be with those of the living. She had taken up refuge in her rooms for nigh a month, crying everyday.  
She regretted that time greatly, especially when letters came from her brother and eldest son both telling of Kili and his progress and how much he seemed to miss his mother.  
Her heart had broken all over again each time she reread those letters, but she had done nothing about it.  
Only when she heard that a water bending master had been found for Kili did she decide it was time to leave the Blue Mountains and come back to Erebor for good.  
But, it seemed that that had not lessened the pain for anyone…  
“I…” she tried to tell Balin, turning back to him, her long braid flying over her shoulder as she turned, but the advisor simply stared at her, eyes hard.  
“Love is the greatest power that the Avatar possesses,” he told her, voice firm, “love for those around them, and love for everything that they keep sentry over.”  
Dis opened her mouth to say something, anything, when the huge doors behind her opened, her brother and the elf striding through them.  
Thorin looked tired as Dis looked at him, but the Elf looked serious.  
“I will hasten to do what you asked,” the prince told the dwarf king, his light eyes gleaming in the darkened hall.  
Thorin simply nodded at him, the prince taking his leave after that, lightly walking past the other two dwarves in the hall before he turned around a corner and disappeared from view.  
Dis turned back to look at her brother then, Balin doing the same behind her.  
“Well,” she finally asked when her kin said nothing, her own voice hollow and hoarse, “what happened?”  
Thorin sighed mightily, reaching a hand up to rub at his lined forehead, “come in,” he told them, “and I will tell you…”  
He revolved himself around and headed back into the feast hall, Dis glancing back at Balin, who did not even look at her before he followed.  
The Princess had little choice but to follow them both…  
Thorin poured himself a large cup full of ale as his sister and advisor sat down at the long table.  
The king took a heavy drink before setting the goblet down and looking at both of them, “Prince Legolas has agreed to help us against Lady Galadriel and Lord Elrond.”  
He watched as the two other dwarves exhaled deeply.  
“Will his father send an army to help us?” Dis asked, her dark blue eyes wide as she stared up at him.  
Thorin sighed once more, “Legolas said that he would send word to his father, to see if the King of Mirkwood would be willing to help us, other than sending just pretty words of alliance.” He may have just been in conference with the son of the woodland realms monarch but it was obvious how he still felt about Thranduil.  
“Thranduil had no part in the plans of kidnapping Kili then,” Balin asked, nervously unrolling and re-rolling a scrap of paper.  
“No,” Thorin told him, “the air bender elves had no part in any such plan. In fact, Legolas acted as though his father had been physically ill when hearing of such a plan.”  
Balin nodded, slumping down in his seat.  
Dis spoke up then though, her posture perfectly straight as her brows furrowed, “but what do they plan to do about it?! We have to assume that the water benders come closer every day since we have had no news from Gandalf contradicting this. What if this comes to war?!”  
Thorin leaned against a chair close to him, hands gripping the sides of the backrest, “then,” he said lowly, “war will come. And we will fight.”  
Both of the dwarves before him visibly paled…  
Gandalf sighed to himself sadly as he sat within his guarded tent.  
Since the talk he had had with Lady Galadriel and Lord Elrond the two elves had grown suspicious of him and had placed chaperones upon him to restrain him from leaving or getting away at all.  
The guards had instructions to blood bend him if necessary at all.  
Now, sitting within the tent, sheltered from the rain outside, the wizard thought of his friends back in Erebor and how he had failed them.  
He had no way to escape, no way to warn them, and no way to help them while he was stuck in the water bending elves’ camp.  
Looking up at the top of the tent Gandalf felt tears prick at his eyes, but he quickly blinked them away. Crying would resolve nothing, and it was a waste of precious reserves. If he was to make an escape attempt he would need to keep up his strength and wits.   
Taking a quick breath the wizard glanced at the entrance of the tent, catching sight of the silhouettes of the two guards posted there.  
Crouching close to the ground he inched closer to the entrance, light eyes piercing as he stared at the ground, looking for movement.  
Then, there.  
Perched on a stalk of grass, wings fluttering, was a moth, its gray body struggling to stay lit on its settlement as quick gusts of wind threatened to unseat it.  
Holding a cautious hand out the wizard reached for the moth, the small creature coming to him, its wings held still as Gandalf took it back into the recesses of his tent and whispered to it, just one word.  
The creature seemed to understand as it immediately took flight when Gandalf released it.  
The moth flew from the tent, its tiny wings working hard to take it back into the sky and far away from the desperate wizard…  
Twice the guards came in to observe Gandalf, their blue eyes cool and impassive as they watched him sip at the wine they brought him, or nibble at the bread they provided.  
The wizard would stare back at them, unblinking, as he tried to keep calm.  
The two guards were just leaving the tent with Gandalf’s empty bowl when a loud shriek pierced through the night.  
The elves looked startled, but Gandalf smiled, slowly rising to his feet as he raised his hands, taking up a fighting stance.  
As quickly as he could the wizard called upon deeper forces, and the inner strength of his chi to blood bend the two.  
It was far easier than it should have been, and it weighed heavily on Gandalf’s heart as he settled the two gently on the ground, then turned and ran for it.  
Outside, hovering lowly in the air was a giant eagle, its golden eyes watching the wizard rush towards it.  
Bending water from a nearby pool Gandalf jumped into the air, allowing for the water to catch him and bring him towards the eagle, one final jump getting him to the birds back.  
“Quickly Gwaihir,” Gandalf said to the eagle, watching as other guards approached, weapons and hands raised, prepared to fight.  
The great eagle gave another call, the sound echoing on the wind as his enormous wings lifted both of them back into the clouds.  
Letting out a breath as they flew further and further away from the elves camp Gandalf rested a hand on the eagle’s neck, the feathers silky beneath his fingertips.  
“To Erebor,” Gandalf said quietly, “I need to tell my friends what I have learned.”  
Gwaihir clicked his beak at the wizard and the two went higher into the air as the eagle hastened towards the mountain…  
Bilbo walked down the halls of Erebor, the sky outside darkening as the day came closer and closer to an end  
He had left Fili and Kili alone with each other for company in the training room earlier, though he was sure they had moved on from there now.  
Turning around a corner to go to his room Bilbo scrambled to a stop when he almost ran into a tall figure.  
“I’m so sorry,” he quickly breathed out, tilting his head back to look up at the person, and was immediately surprised when he stared up into the face of the Elf Prince.  
“Oh,” he squeaked out, unable to look away.  
The elf before him smiled, “you must be the famous water bender everyone is whispering about. I am Legolas, it is a pleasure to meet you.”  
The hobbit stared at him, gob smacked, “B-Bilbo Baggins,” he stammered out, “it is an honor to meet you at long last.”  
Legolas laughed a bit at that, the sound like twinkling bells to the hobbit. The prince stopped after a beat and looked back down at him, “I hear that my old pupil is quite fond of you,” the elf said, shifting his weight so that he was almost leaning against the wall.  
“Oh,” Bilbo breathed out, “I…I don’t know about that…and I’m not sure why he would be fond of me if that is true.” Bilbo felt oddly comfortable talking to this elf, even though he did not know him, and felt as though he should be intimidated by him.  
Legolas looked him over, his searching eyes roaming over the hobbit’s face. “I think there is more to you than meet’s the eye.”   
Bilbo blinked at that, surprised and confused, but before he could utter a word the elf was brushing past him.  
“Good night Master Baggins,” the elf called over his shoulder, “I am sure we will see one another again soon.”  
Bilbo looked after him, raising a brow and huffing out a breath. It seemed that everyone who stayed in this mountain was confusing.  
Doing his best to ignore such strange thoughts Bilbo shook his head and went back to walking down the hall, turning a few more times before arriving at his own room.  
Turning the doorknob and pushing the heavy wooden door open Bilbo looked up and was shocked to see someone else already in his rooms.  
The person turned and Bilbo grew even more astounded, “Thorin?!”  
The dwarf did not say a word, simply stood there with his arms behind his back, his brows lowered over his eyes…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Uh-oh! Uh-oh! Thorin's up in his room like a thief in the night!! Does he even have clothes on I wonder...


	6. Part 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> ~Many discussions take place, and some things are made clearer. Meanwhile, the fight of the century gathers like a storm on the horizon…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it's been so long since I updated...I've been too lazy and sort of busy...  
> Enjoy anyway!!

When Dis broke away from her brother and his advisor she went to search for her children, her heart heavy as Balin’s reminder of all of her past deeds came back to her.  
She still felt like she had failed her children after all this time, like she was unworthy of even looking at them in all of their brilliance.  
After searching their usual haunts and not finding a trace of them the princess sat down on a conveniently placed stone bench in the hall.  
She stared at the wall opposite of her, eyes clouding as she remembered the day that she had sent her children away…  
“I don’t want to go,” Kili had whimpered to her, big brown eyes welling up with tears as he stared up at her, clinging to her skirt.  
Fili stood at a distance, carrying an overstuffed pack on his shoulders as he avoided eye contact with his mother.  
They were both much too young to leave their home in the Blue Mountains, but Dis felt that she could no longer care for them.  
“You must go,” she murmured to her youngest son, stroking over his dark tangled hair, “it is for the best. Uncle Thorin will teach you all kinds of things, and you will make many new friends. I am sure of it.”  
Fili’s jaw had tightened from where he stood, hand clenching around his brother’s pack, which he held.  
“I don’t want to,” Kili had sniffled out, hugging onto her waist, his tears staining her dress.  
“You must,” Dis had said, unable to even hug her child back. They reminded her of her husband too much.  
When Kili looked up at her, her husband’s eyes looked back at her, pleading and distraught. When she looked at Fili it was as if a younger version of her love stood there, angry and upset.  
“Why can’t we stay here with you,” Kili asked, as he had been asking for months now.   
Dis had sighed, placing a hand on her son’s thin shoulder, unable to answer him as usual.  
“Come on Kili,” her eldest son had said, his voice hoarse and raw, “we have to go. The guards have come to get us.”  
It was true. Thorin had sent a small company to escort his two nephews to Erebor safely, and they had stood off to the side, waiting for the younger prince to finish saying his goodbyes.  
“You must go,” Dis had said softly to her youngest child, “you must go and train. You must do this for me.”  
Kili had looked up at her, his eyes and nose leaking, “promise you’ll come to us soon,” he had demanded, small hands tightening around her skirt, “promise you’ll come back to us.”  
Dis had nodded absentmindedly, “I promise. When you are nearly finished with your training I will come to you.”  
Kili’s face had brightened then and he had nodded fiercely, squeezing her one last time before letting go and running to his brother.  
She had watched them go, dead inside as they rode away from her. She did not even feel the cold wind as it whispered through her hair, nor did she feel the salty wetness of the tears running down her face, threatening to drown her…  
Now, Dis sighed heavily to herself.  
Kili had nearly worked himself to death to finish his training so that they could be together. And she had broken her promise to come to him and his brother. She had broken her promise to be with her children.  
“Mother?” The voice was as familiar as her own and the princess looked up into the brown eyes of her youngest child.  
His brow was furrowed as he stared at her, “why are you crying?”  
Surprised, Dis reached up and ran her fingertips across her face, mortified when droplets clung to her skin.  
“I-I’m sorry,” she said hoarsely to him, unable to meet his eyes, shame filling her.  
Kili sat down next to her, his side brushing against hers, “it’s alright,” he said lowly, reminding her of Thorin when he was younger.  
“I-I didn’t come in time,” she said to her child, the words falling out swiftly, “I missed everything. You and Fili grew up without me.”  
Kili stared at her, “if we had stayed,” he said, voice strained, “we would have grown up without you anyway.”   
Dis felt immeasurable pain in her heart at those words, but she knew they were the truth.  
“You weren’t there,” Kili said slowly, eyes downcast now, studying his boots, “you were in the grave with Father. You were dead.”  
Dis held a hand to her mouth, biting down on her lip as more tears pearled across her cheeks, “I know.”  
“But,” Kili said, “you’re here now. You’re alive again. And that‘s what matters.”   
She looked over at him, eyes widening as she stared, chest full of warring regret and love.  
He looked back up at her, hair in his eyes, much like her husband’s hair had been the day they had met. But, for once, that small fact didn’t matter. This was her son, and he was no shadow of someone long dead.  
Reaching out she brought him close to her chest, hugging him close, feeling his arms wrap around her.  
“I love you,” her youngest son whispered, “I never stopped loving you.”  
Unable to control her smile Dis buried her head in his hair, “and I you.”  
They sat like that for an immeasurable amount of time, and it was all right…  
Bilbo stared at the intruder of his room, the dwarf standing in the middle of the area.  
The hobbit noticed that the king was without a crown, and his usual heavy robe had been tossed onto Bilbo’s bed, the rich fabric and fur standing out in the plain area.  
“What are you doing here,” the water bender finally asked, turning his eyes back to the dwarf.  
Thorin looked upset, but that could have just been his usual look enhanced by his furrowed brows, “I came to see you,” he said after a moment, the answer stilted.  
Bilbo huffed out a breath and crossed his arms, “I can see that. But did something happen? Are you alright?” He tried to look the dwarf over for injuries but there was no visible blood or wound in sight.  
Thorin was shaking his head, ignoring the hobbit’s searching eyes, “I wished to see you,” his eyes were flashing dangerously, “is that such a nuisance to you?!”  
Bilbo bit the inside of his cheek, avoiding the sapphire gaze, “I just…no. It’s fine. I just assumed you would be quite busy for the next couple of days.”  
Bilbo was loathe to admit it, but he thought that Thorin might avoid him after their kiss, as bare of a kiss as it was. He had been a bit embarrassed by it, after they were caught in the act and all, but neither Kili nor Thorin had made mention of it yet, so it appeared to be out of everyone else’s minds but Bilbo’s.  
Thorin just stared at the hobbit now, watching him with darkened eyes as Bilbo shifted uncomfortably.  
“Um,” the water bender finally decided, “so…you’ve seen me. Now what?”  
Thorin stared at him for a moment more, eyes stormier than usual as he seemed to edge closer, though Bilbo couldn’t tell for certain as he couldn’t look away from the gaze that he was captured in.  
Then, the dwarf whispered to him, the words nearly breathed out against Bilbo’s face, “now?” The king repeated, “now, this.” His eyelids started to slip closed, and the hobbit felt himself starting to do the same, Thorin’s lips so, so close when a sudden bang sounded nearby, scaring both hobbit and dwarf.  
“Mister Bilbo,” a voice called out through the door, “come quickly! It’s Mister Gandalf! He’s back! And he demands to see you!”  
Bilbo pulled away from the dwarf uncertainly, unable to look upon him and turned away, “we should go,” the hobbit said as he heard the harbinger stomp away, “Gandalf probably has important news.” He glanced up then, to see if the dwarf had acknowledged his words.  
Thorin was nodding slightly, his eyes still set upon the hobbit intently, “someday,” he said lowly, “there won’t be any interruptions, and I will get that kiss.”  
Bilbo flushed deeply and scurried over to the door to open it, dashing through it as Thorin hurried to put on his robe behind him…  
Gandalf looked exhausted when Bilbo came upon him in the throne room.  
A chair had been set out for him, and the wizard had slumped down in it haphazardly, his hands in his lap as he seemed to nearly doze off every few minutes.  
“Gandalf!” The hobbit cried out, hurrying forward to see his friend.  
“Are you alright,” the hobbit asked, “are you injured? I can heal you!” The small water bender was already producing his water flask when the wizard waved off his concern.  
“I am fine Bilbo, merely tired. I have much to tell before I can rest though.”   
The wizard looked as though he wanted to say more, but he was silenced when Thorin came through the door, swiftly walking towards the gray clad man.  
“What happened?” The king asked, his crown miraculously back on top of his head again.  
Gandalf shook his head, “Galadriel and Elrond have brought an army. They march this way as we speak. My words were useless on them, and had no effect. Madness has reached their minds, and nothing can stop it.”  
Bilbo glanced worriedly up at the dwarf near him, and Thorin looked back, the same expression reflected in his pupils.  
“When will they arrive,” Thorin asked, his hands clasped tightly behind his back.  
“Soon,” Gandalf rasped, “tomorrow, the day after that. It may depend upon their form of attack, and it may depend on whether or not they try to diplomatically take Kili away first.”  
Thorin growled at that, turning away to pace by the end of the stairs leading to the throne.  
“What can we do Gandalf?” Bilbo asked the man, gently tugging at his gray robes.  
“Prepare,” the wizard said sternly, “the elves had only water benders in their entourage…but they have been trained in the art of blood bending.”  
Bilbo went stock still at that, eyes going wide as Thorin did the same.  
“Blood bending,” the hobbit breathed out. The forbidden bending. It brought curses and destruction upon those who used it, along with eternal damnation.  
“They need to be at close range to blood bend,” Thorin said, as though reassuring himself.  
“This is true,” Gandalf agreed, “but alert your generals regardless. I do not want anyone harmed with that bending when it could have been prevented.”  
Thorin nodded smoothly then turned to look the wizard in the eye, “will you stay for the attack? Or will you leave us again?”  
Gandalf stared coolly back at the dwarf king as Bilbo awkwardly stood nearby.  
“I will stay and help where I can,” the wizard assured, “I would not leave Erebor alone at such a time as this. I would not leave the Avatar.”  
Thorin stared at him for a moment before nodding again, turning away to march back to the throne room doors, “I will tell the generals,” Thorin called back, “and we will prepare for battle!” He left in a blustering manner, Bilbo staring off after him.  
Then, he turned back to the wizard, “how were you able to leave them Gandalf, if the elves did not listen to you?”  
The wizard went still, his eyes gazing off into the distance as though he were a million miles away, “with the help of a friend,” he said finally, “a dear friend.”  
Bilbo stared up at him, biting his lower lip in concern before patting the wizard’s hand.   
“Come on,” he told the ancient water bender, “let’s get you to bed. You must be exhausted.”  
The wizard followed like a meek puppy, and Bilbo felt a bit uneasy by that…  
Elrond felt as though he couldn’t decide on anything anymore.  
It felt as though there was something in his mind, something that clouded his thoughts and led his actions.   
His mother by marriage told him to ignore such thoughts, to pay attention to the things that mattered here and now. But that seemed a difficult task to do when there was a nagging feeling in the brain.  
“We will give them an offer,” Galadriel told him as they sat together in her tent, soft candles flickering around the room, “they will either give the Avatar to us, or they will face the consequences. It is simple.”  
Elrond shifted in his seat, feeling uncomfortable again, the pressure in his brain gathering around the back, “but what if they do not take the offer? Thorin is a proud king, he would rather die than see his kin given over to us.”  
Galadriel smoothed her fingers over the side of her cup, not even looking up at him, “they must accept,” she told him, “or their utter destruction will be reaped upon them.”  
Elrond shuddered, remembering a time when the Lady in front of him had been more gentle, and had played with her grandchildren in the sun and forest.  
Now, she seemed to stick only to shadow and moonlight, her skin nearly translucent as Elrond gazed at her, a frown marring his face.  
“How can we reach them from behind the walls of Erebor,” he asked her, thinking of all of the lives that may be ruined over this battle.  
The she-elf continued to look into her wine, “they will come to us,” she whispered, voice deepening, “they will crawl out from behind their nest and face us in battle because they will have no choice.”  
Elrond raised a brow inquisitively, listening as she went on.  
“I have seen the future,” she voiced, “and I have seen what will lead them from their mines.” Her eyes widened and shone bright, “the Avatar will come out and fight, as it is his destiny to do. His righteous nature will prevail, and he will give himself over to us before he sees any of his people hurt.”  
Elrond breathed out a ragged breath, “he will bring his own downfall upon himself.”  
“Exactly,” Galadriel said, looking up at him this time, yet, when Elrond looked into her enlarged pupils he did not see his own reflection there, he simply saw unending darkness…  
The next day in the mountain was awful as everyone seemed to be panicking and running around, making a mess of things.   
Thorin had gathered his generals the night before, and seemed to still be in council with them, Gandalf wakening early in the morning to join them.  
Bilbo had been in half a mind to sneak in to listen to the king’s words himself, but Dis had found him during a break of the council and had escorted him to her son’s rooms where they apparently had been quarantined.  
“Thorin doesn’t want them sneaking off,” Dis had told him as they walked ever closer to the secluded hall where the prince’s stayed. “He’s afraid they will want to join the fight, and I have to agree with my brother on that. Fili and Kili are much to valuable to us and the rest of Erebor to have in such a dangerous battle.”  
“But Kili’s the Avatar,” Bilbo said, looking at her in surprise, “it’s his job to do this. And surely Fili will have to go to war sometime when he is king.”  
Dis bit her lip and stopped in her steps, putting a hand up to the wall to steady herself, “love,” she told the hobbit, “makes us dwarves covetous and scared.” She gazed into the water bender’s eyes, her own shining, “I don’t want to lose my son’s again. If I can help it they will remain within Erebor, and they will not go to war.”  
She gestured to a door then, giving Bilbo no time to respond to her words, “there,” she said, the words shaky, “Fili and Kili share adjoining rooms. Please make sure they do not go anywhere. I am counting on you.”  
Bilbo opened his mouth to speak but the dwarf was gone, already walking back the same way they had come, her steps ringing out across the stone floor.  
Sighing to himself Bilbo turned towards the door and knocked, only entering when he was bid entrance…  
When Bilbo entered the room he found that neither Fili nor Kili were too perturbed by his presence, in fact, it was as if they did not even really realize he was there.  
Kili was sitting by the window staring out of it, a pout on his face as he pressed his knees close to his chest.  
Fili sat on the floor, his usual boots cast aside in order for him to curl up on the ground, carving a small wooden sculpture with one of his knives.  
The hobbit raised a brow at them and folded his arms over his chest, “what’s the matter with you two?”  
Fili didn’t look up from his whittling, but he answered for the both of them, “Uncle won’t let us join the fight. He says that there is too much at risk for us to go with him into battle.”  
Bilbo furrowed his brows, about to ask for more information when Kili cut in, a frown in his voice, “he thinks we’re not suitable for fighting,” the Avatar said, his hair rustling in the breeze from outside, “he thinks that we will not succeed if we go into battle.”  
Fili shook his head from his spot, rolling his eyes, “that’s not true and you know it. He’s just worried for us.”  
The brunette whipped his head around, hair flying as he glared at his brother, “worried?! He lets you fight usually, but for now he just wants you to stay and watch after me. Don’t deny it, I know that this is true! He favors you and highly praises your fighting! I’m still just little baby Kili who isn’t strong enough to go into battle along side the both of you!”  
There were tears in his eyes now, and he was standing, fists clenched at his sides as the stone under Bilbo’s feet seemed to rumble with the force of Kili’s bending ability.  
Seeing that Fili could not respond to his brother’s accusations, his face still one of shock, Bilbo stepped forward, hands raised appealingly.  
“That’s not true,” the hobbit said, “I may not know your Uncle the way you two do, but from an outsider’s perspective I can see that the love he has for you two has not been divided but multiplied. He cares not for your fighting abilities, but for your safety. He does not want to see you hurt.”  
Kili huffed a laugh, but a voice from the door stopped him from retorting something rude to the small hobbit.  
“It is true,” the voice said, and Bilbo turned his head to see the king himself standing in the doorway, “you two are my greatest treasures, and I would rather die than see harm come to either of you.”  
The two young dwarves stared at their uncle, frozen as he stared back at them.  
“I know you are both powerful and capable,” Thorin continued, “but I would have you stay here where it is safe. Please, do this for me.”  
Bilbo started at the ‘please’ that was used and turned to fully gawp at the king.  
It was quiet for a moment, all of them mulling over the kings words before Kili made a small noise in the back of his throat and bound forward, flinging his arms around his uncle, holding him tightly in his embrace.  
Thorin hugged him back gently, stroking the hair that was so similar to his own before him, then opened his arms further to include Fili when he came up too.  
Bilbo watched the scene before him, feeling that he did not exactly belong in the moment, but Thorin looked over his nephew’s shoulders just a moment later into the hobbit’s eyes, and Bilbo knew that he belonged there in that instance.  
After another squeeze the dwarves all separated and Thorin grunted at the two of his kin before turning to Bilbo, “into the hall Halfling, I would have words with you.”  
Bilbo gulped but did as he was bid, following the tall dwarf into the silent halls, the door closing loudly behind them.  
Thorin led them down the hall a bit before he stopped and turned to the hobbit, producing a letter from his pocket, “the Lady Galadriel sent this this morning,” he said handing the piece of parchment to the hobbit.  
Carefully, Bilbo read over the words, somewhat surprised:

King Under the Mountain,  
By noon today the Avatar must be within our campsite safely, and without insubordination.  
If you do not turn the Avatar over to us we will lay ruin to Erebor until we have possession of the Avatar.  
Think of your people and do the right thing.  
~Lady Galadriel, Queen of Lothlorien, the Lady of Light

The message was exceedingly short, and Bilbo blinked a few times before handing the letter to Thorin again.  
“Does Kili know about this,” the hobbit asked, even though he already knew the answer.  
“No,” Thorin said seriously, “and nor will he ever know about it. If Kili knew about the elves decrees he would turn himself over to protect his people and his family. We must not let this happen.”  
“We?!” Bilbo squeaked, suddenly overcome with anxiety.  
Thorin nodded, “I need you to make sure that neither Kili nor Fili leave their chambers, and remain here in Erebor. When the fighting begins both of them will want to join it, but they must not.”  
Bilbo felt faint, and he slumped against the wall next to him in fear of falling, “but what if they resist, what will I do if they are able to escape?!”  
Thorin frowned, his eyes darkening, “you will do whatever is necessary to keep them within the walls of the castle.”  
Bilbo nodded, biting the inside of his cheek so hard that he could taste blood.  
Thorin’s face softened as he studied the hobbit, and he reached a hand out to grasp one of the water bender’s smaller ones, “please,” the king said softly, “do this for me.”  
Bilbo stared at him, nodding again before Thorin gave him an answering tilt of the head and turned away, disappearing around the nearest corner before Bilbo could blink.  
Trying not to hyperventilate the hobbit took a quaking breath before he tottered back to the boys’ rooms…  
Elrond stared up at the mountain before him, mighty statues littering the sides of Erebor, and the entrance that was large and grand.  
Behind him the elf army waited, Galadriel waiting until the sun was high in the sky, giving the dwarves ample time to respond to her requests.  
The Lady of Light was cool and unflappable beside the elfish lord, her light eyes fixed upon the mountain, her pupils wide despite the amount of sunlight hitting the area in which she stood.  
“Only minutes left until noon,” Elrond told her quietly, the words murmured as he stared at her profile.  
She did not look at him, instead she inclined her head, “prepare the troops for battle,” she told him, “when we strike, Erebor will fall swiftly and without mercy.”  
The cold words sent a tingle down the male elf’s spine, but he turned and did as she bid, ordering the troops into their battle stations, and making sure that they were all provided with the weapons and water that they would need to fight with.  
Hunching his shoulders up to protect his neck Elrond glanced back at the mountain, tugging at his armor once before looking back towards the Lady Galadriel.  
She stood tall and unaffected by the happenings of the soldiers around her, her white dress waving in the breeze, her golden chest plate shining from the midday sun.  
Now, Elrond supposed, was when the Lady of Light would approach Erebor and smite it…  
Thorin paced in front of the legions of troops that stood just inside of Erebor’s front gates. All of the soldiers were clad in their battle armor, their helmets shielding their eyes as the gates opened wide to let them pass.  
“Do not be frightened,” the king called to his people, “we have a cause, and we have the might to fight! We can win this battle as long as we have hope and reason to! Now, come, let us go and end these elves!”  
An answering roar sounded from the troops, and Thorin held aloft one fist and called out a battle scream, running out into the sunlight, the force of Erebor behind him…  
The dwarves came quickly and in great number, but Galadriel knew how to handle them it seemed.  
From a waterfall that was nestled nearby she bended the water towards the dwarves, making a wall of liquid, protecting the elves behind it.  
“Shoot!” Elrond yelled to the archers, prompting them to release a volley of arrows high over the water wall, the sound of yells following soon after.  
From behind the water Elrond could see the dwarves running closer, despite their fallen troops, one particular dwarf in general edging too close for comfort.  
“Shoot him!” Elrond commanded, a bit worried about the way the tall dwarf raised a fist towards the wall.  
Before the elf he had yelled at had time to fire though, the dwarf extended his arm and a bolt of fire shot out from his fist, the flames so powerful that they shattered the water wall, and made it take the form of steam.  
“No!” Elrond gasped out to himself, watching as the dwarves swarmed into the elves camp, earth bending and corralling the elves into small niches.  
The elves were fighting back as best as they could, and water started to fly every where as they bended back at the dwarves, doing the most they could with their limited supply.  
Flustered, Elrond himself undid the caps to the water pouches at his waist, bending his element and quickly knocking two dwarves away from himself with a well placed water whip.  
Slashing at another nearby dwarf with the water Elrond looked up to see the Lady Galadriel standing atop a hill, looking down at the commotion near her, her eyes impassive and uncaring.  
Fighting his way towards her Elrond made a water octopus, fitting himself inside of it and pushing dwarves away with the water tentacles when they ventured too close.  
Almost towards the lady Elrond bended the water to leave his sides and instead swoop around in a huge loop to slam all nearby dwarf warriors to the ground.  
Reaching the hill’s edge Elrond put a foot on top of it and went immediately still when he heard the most terrible sound imaginable.  
“Woodland elves!” A soldier shouted, “it’s the woodland elves!”  
Elrond felt terror strike his heart.   
The elves from Greenwood had denied to help Galadriel and Elrond in their task to take the Avatar, and the lord of Rivendell now knew that they were here to help the dwarves.  
“Traitors,” Elrond spat out to himself, but was surprised when a voice from behind him answered his accusation.  
“No,” the quivering voice disagreed, “you are the only traitor here!”  
Whipping his head around Elrond caught sight of the gray wizard, Gandalf holding a sword in one hand with a pouch of water at his side.  
“You have no right to interfere,” Elrond growled at him, curling his fingers into a fist to bend the water towards the wizard, intent on destroying him, when suddenly Gandalf dropped his sword and raised both of his hands into a stance that Elrond had seen many times, but he himself had never used.  
Immediately loosing all control over his limbs Elrond felt his body lift into the air as he was blood bended.  
Impossible, the ancient elf thought absentmindedly, it’s not the full moon, it’s not even night…


	7. Part 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> ~A battle is fought, and things are revealed that no one could have ever predicted…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Last chapter!!!! Enjoy!!

Elrond had no control over himself as his limbs twisted and bent themselves against his will.  
In a flash, thoughts and memories came rushing back to him, and the elf had to squeeze his eyes shut to try and control them…  
Light, pain, water.  
Glorfindel’s betrayed look as Elrond drowned him, some dark magic controlling his movements as Elrond watched his friend die as he bended the water against his will.  
“You have done the right thing,” Galadriel told him as she lowered her gnarled hands, the once smooth and pale skin deformed and rotted as she was taken possession of by some horrible being.  
“What have you done?” He asked, unable to stop himself from staring at the cooling body of his closest friend, then unable to look away from the endless dark pools that were now the she-elf’s eyes.  
“I have taken the world’s last hope and crushed it,” Galadriel said, but her voice was not her own.  
It was dark and terrible, like something from a deep chasm that had no business being in the light of the moon and in the open.  
“You are not yourself,” Elrond had said, backing away, but he soon found that he could not as his body stopped moving, bound by some invisible force to stay where he was, trapped.  
“You will not remember this,” the not-Galadriel said, voice haunting, “you have aided me, but you will not remember anything else but that.”  
Elrond had tried to squirm away, but he could not move as the black fingers moved towards him and touched his forehead. And after that, all he remembered was all consuming darkness…  
Gasping, Elrond came back to reality, and found that he could move again.  
Clutching his head he looked up, meeting the light eyes of Gandalf the Gray.  
“That’s not Galadriel,” he panted to the wizard as he struggled to stand, “she’s been possessed by something!”  
Gandalf opened his mouth to say something, but was cut off when he whirled around at the sound of a loud yell, the sound echoing across the battle field and making most look.  
From atop the hill the tall dwarf from earlier, who had fire bended the wall, was rushing towards the not-Galadriel, a flame engulfing his entire fist as he tried to fight the elf.  
“Thorin,” Gandalf breathed out, “no!”  
Both wizard and elf could only watch as the dwarf flung himself closer…  
Bilbo and the two princes could feel the vibrations of earth being bended from inside Erebor.  
“We have to help them!” Kili said, trying to run towards the door.  
Panicking, Bilbo’s hand automatically went towards the flask at his side and he bended the water to push the prince back.  
“You can’t go out there,” he yelled breathlessly at the prince, watching as both of them stared at him in shock.  
“We have to go out there,” Kili tried to reason, glancing at the water hovering near Bilbo, “I have to protect everyone!”  
“No,” Bilbo shouted again, the water quivering in front of him with his emotions, “your mother and uncle left me here to keep you safe! I have to do as they command, I can’t let them down and let you get hurt!”  
Fili and Kili stared at him in silence for a few moments, their eyes shadowed.  
“Please,” Fili said as he took a step closer, “if it was your family out there fighting, wouldn’t you want to help?”  
Bilbo thought of his nephew for a moment, then he thought of Thorin, who could possibly be out there injured or worse.  
“Don’t you think I’m worried too,” he asked the crown prince, “my friends are out there too. But, I have to keep you safe, no matter what I want.”  
Kili looked angry as he stepped up beside his brother, “we can’t sit by idly as they are hurt in battle! I’ll fight you if I have to, but you can’t stop me from leaving!”  
Fili cut in diplomatically, “come with us,” he pleaded, “you can keep us safe that way, and you technically won’t be leaving us. Just come with us, you can help!”  
Bilbo thought about that for a moment, lowering the water in front of him.  
If he went with the lads he could go and help his friends, help those that he had learned to be with and build relationships with. He could go and help Thorin.  
“Please,” Kili said, eyes wide as he stared at him, and that broke Bilbo’s resolve.  
“Fine,” he conceded, emotions getting the better of him, “lead the way!”  
Fili nodded seriously at him, much like his uncle had only hours before at the hobbit, and Bilbo found himself following the two blindly as they led him out of the castle…  
Fili led them through some abandoned tunnels that supposedly ran inside the mountain and would lead them straight to where the battle was.  
“These tunnels go to the sides of Erebor,” Fili said to them as he panted from his running, “if Kili can move the rock from inside of the mountain then we can come right out to where the fighting is happening and intervene.”  
It sounded like a good plan, but Bilbo was insanely worried that they would be too late to help matters, or that they would be captured.  
“Don’t worry,” Kili called back to the hobbit, “I’m the Avatar, and I won’t let anything happen to you!”  
Bilbo bit his lip, but ran faster to keep up with the other two, his sides already cramping…  
Once Kili had located a secure spot to exit from he earth bended a small hole for the three to exit from, daylight streaming into the dark tunnels and making Bilbo even more anxious.  
When they crawled out of the tunnel Bilbo was startled to see that they were in the very middle of the fighting, elves and dwarves all around them.  
“Come on,” Kili yelled to the water bender, grabbing his left hand and dragging him closer to the eye of the battle.  
“We have to find Thorin,” Fili yelled out, pushing an elf away from him with a well placed kick to the stomach.  
“How are we supposed to find him in all of this,” Bilbo asked, just when a horrible scream echoed across the battlefield, catching everyone’s attention.  
Looking towards the sound the hobbit gasped out roughly as he saw a familiar dark haired dwarf atop a hill with a tall elf clad all in white.  
He watched as the dwarf king bended his fire, trying to hit the female elf, but missing as she dodged his attack.  
“We have to get closer,” Kili breathed out next to him, but Bilbo could barely move as the air grew tense and thick around them. It felt as though the air had gone dry.  
Then, Bilbo realized.  
The elf was bending all of the moisture from the very air around her, and taking it all to use in her fight.  
Watching in horror as the elf tripped Thorin up, Bilbo saw the water gather above her, the white hands of the elf moving to bend the water into an ice spear, and then, he watched it come down and stab the dwarf before her.  
Unable to scream Bilbo stared, hearing the sound of Kili’s cry of ‘no’ beside him, but it sounded so far away.  
Choking on the thin air around them Bilbo watched as Thorin went still under the ice, his brilliant eyes fluttering shut.  
Then, a brilliant color flooded the scene.  
Shocked, Bilbo looked over at Kili, terrified when he realized that the light was coming from him.  
His eyes glowed an eerie blue, and the young dwarf began to rise into the air, an orb coming up around him that was being made of all of the elements.  
Water from Bilbo’s pouch flowed up to meet the Avatar, and fire and air melded around him. Stones flew from the ground to join the other three elements, and Bilbo tried to back away when they came to close.  
“Kili,” the hobbit heard Fili shout, but it was too late.  
The earth began to rumble as the Avatar bended it, making a natural fence around the entire battle field, caging all of them in.  
The water from the elves rose into the air above all of them, evaporating as the Avatar willed it away.  
“Kili, no,” Fili shouted again, Bilbo catching sight of him as he tried to reach for his brother, but the prince was in the Avatar state now, and nothing could stop him.  
Rock flew from the mountain as Kili flew closer to the hill where his uncle and the she-elf were still placed.  
“Kili,” Bilbo tried himself, reaching his left hand out, and feeling a sudden, horrible pain as a crunching sound rose from under his skin as a huge stone slammed up against his arm, making the hobbit cry out and fall to the ground, still stuck under the rock.  
Kili was now above the elf entirely, and he opened his mouth to speak, the words coming out double-sided and loud, the people around him cowering in fear.  
“You have killed someone I love,” the Avatar said, and the elf simply stared at him, unafraid, “you will pay.”  
Kili extended his hand, and the flames gathered there before the elf lifted a hand herself, gathering water from the air again.  
The elf looked as though she were about to strike, but then, suddenly, she was held back, her own limbs moving in unnatural ways. Blood bending.  
“Wait!” A voice called out, and Bilbo watched through watery eyes as Gandalf appeared near the hill, “she is possessed by Sauron, cleanse her spirit Avatar Kili, and she will repent and heal what has been broken!”  
Something in those words seemed to get through to the Avatar, and he lowered his hand, instead moving closer and extending his other hand, which was completely devoid of any element.  
“Release the evil spirit from your body,” the Avatar said as he placed his hand upon the elf’s face, ignoring the vile darkness that seemed to inch over the pale skin, “be free of Sauron’s evil spell.”  
A bright light filled the world as the Avatar finished the last line, and Bilbo had to look away, lest he be blinded.  
When he was able to look the elf was crumpled on the ground, clutching at her head, and Kili was standing before her, his eyes once again brown and wide.  
Watching Gandalf stride up the hill and realizing that the battle was over, Bilbo succumbed to the darkness threatening to overcome him, and fainted dead away from the world…  
When Thorin woke up the only thing that he could do was rub at his tender abdomen and take a deep breath.  
He remembered dying, but now, apparently, he realized that he had not in fact ever died.  
“You were healed,” a voice said from beside his bed, and Thorin cautiously moved his head to gaze into the eyes of a certain wizard.  
“What happened,” the king asked, and was not pleased with how gravelly his voice sounded.  
“You were stabbed,” Gandalf told him, “by an elf who was possessed by the spirit of Sauron.”  
Thorin blinked, letting the wizard continue, “your nephew saved you, and all of us, in fact.”  
The king frowned at that, “I told Kili to stay inside of the castle, I left the hobbit to look after him, after them both…”  
Gandalf smiled, “they did not listen. And, they risked much to come and help you. Thank the heavens they did in fact. Who knows what would have happened if the Avatar had not arrived just in time.”  
Thorin shook his head, “where are they? I wish to see my nephews.”  
Gandalf shook his head, “I would wager they would be visiting Bilbo. The hobbit had a bit of a mishap when he was on the battlefield. Was quite injured in the process.”  
Thorin felt his heart skip a beat. Sitting up and throwing back his covers he jumped out of the bed and raced out of the room, not even seeing the twinkle in the wizard’s eye…  
Elrond breathed in a fresh breath of air as he sat on the balcony of his room in the mountain.  
The darkness that had plagued him for so long seemed to have lifted, and the elf felt as though he could finally breathe again.  
“It’s good to be yourself again I take it.”  
Elrond turned around to see Legolas Greenleaf standing there, his hands positioned behind his back, and his bright eyes unblinking.  
“Yes,” Elrond finally agreed, turning back to look across the land at Dale, “I feel free again, which I have not felt in a long time…but, I still bear the weight of a guilty mind. I murdered one of my closest friends, and no matter what anyone says, I cannot take that back.”  
He felt Legolas walk closer, and listened as the younger elf spoke.  
“I think Glorfindel would have forgiven you,” the prince said, “he would rather have died than have seen innocents killed because of him. Had he not been stopped he would have raged on and ravaged Middle Earth until there was nothing left.”  
Elrond looked up at the other elf, the young one’s long hair flying in the breeze, “you are wise Legolas, son of Thranduil. You have made new friends with such wisdom, and you kept your promise to your friends while others have not.” He looked down at his hands then, his heart heavy with sorrow.  
“I did what was right,” Legolas said, “and I think you will too from now on.”  
Elrond looked up again, but the prince was already walking away, leaving the older elf to his thoughts…  
Gandalf found the Lady Galadriel in the throne room, her form rigid as she stared up at the precious stone that adorned the king’s throne.  
“I have caused great stress to Middle Earth,” the elf said when the wizard was merely feet away from her, “and I have destroyed things that were once dear to me.”  
She turned to look at him, and her eyes held the sorrows of thousands of years, “I will journey to Paradise I think, where I can do no more harm to those around me.”  
Gandalf frowned, “you have been purified by the Avatar, you are fit to stay and keep watch over Middle Earth once more.”  
Galadriel smiled softly at that, “my soul is purified,” she said, “but not my heart. I will go and end my days among men and dwarves.”  
“What of wizards,” the grizzled water bender asked, leaning on his staff, “what of hobbits and others? What if there is need of you yet?”  
The elf looked away, back to the stone, “I have seen years beyond count,” she said quietly, “and I feel that it is my time to go.” She held her head up high, “I will let others watch over Middle Earth now, and hope that their ruling will leave a brighter future than mine did.”  
Gandalf felt as though he could say no more after that, as the Lady of Light had obviously made up her mind…  
Fili and Kili had stopped by hours ago and they still had not thought to leave just yet.  
“Will you stay in Erebor,” Kili asked as he burrowed closer to Bilbo’s side, “even after things are right again?’  
The hobbit sighed and stroked the lad’s hair with his good hand. Even though Gandalf had healed the fracture as best as he could Bilbo was the better healer between the two, and he planned on healing himself once the boy’s were gone.  
“I don’t know what I’ll do,” he admitted to the young dwarf, “it…depends on some things.”  
Kili pouted, “what kind of things?!”  
Bilbo grinned and tweaked the brunette’s nose, making him squawk, “on personal things,” he said, finally pushing at the boy. “Time to go,” he said, “I have to finish healing my arm, and I’d like some privacy.”  
Fili uttered something in Khuzdul to Kili from across the room that made the younger boy laugh.  
Pursing his lips Bilbo stuck his nose into the air, “I have no idea what you said but out. Both of you!”  
The two did as they were bid and left the room, closing the door behind them.  
Bilbo had just barely removed the sling in which his arm was in when the door was flung open again, admitting a crazed looking dwarf king inside.  
“Thorin!” Bilbo squeaked, startled, as he was not expecting the dwarf to be out of bed so soon and roaming about.  
“What happened,” Thorin said as he rushed to the hobbit’s side, leaning on the bed to take hold of the water bender’s face, “how badly are you hurt?! Gandalf would not say!”  
Bilbo huffed out an annoyed breath, “that wizard.” Then, he turned his attention back to look at the dwarf, “I’m fine. Much better than you were anyway. I just have a broken arm, and I’m about to heal it now.”  
Thorin leaned back to look at his arm then ducked his head down after a moment to rest on the hobbit’s shoulder, his breath on the Halfling’s skin, “thank Durin,” the dwarf said, his voice choked.  
A little embarrassed Bilbo shifted, “I’m sorry I worried you,” he said, then ruefully added, “and I’m sorry I let Fili and Kili onto the battlefield, but…I just couldn’t leave you all alone out there!”  
Thorin moved back, looking up at him from his position, then, he muttered, “I forgive you.”  
Bilbo beamed at him, smiling sweetly like that until Thorin grinned back wolfishly, his eyes dark.  
“You know,” the dwarf said, “we are alone now. And there shouldn’t be any interruptions…”  
Bilbo took a swift gasping breath, “I suppose so,” he breathed out, then, he wasted no time in pulling Thorin towards him and into a breathtaking kiss…  
Later that night, after he and Thorin had reacquainted themselves with one another, and after he had healed his arm up Bilbo wandered towards Gandalf’s rooms, hoping for a word with the wizard.  
He found the older water bender sitting on his balcony, smoking a pipe of Old Toby’s, and staring off into the distance.  
Leaning against the entrance to the balcony Bilbo asked, “why did you choose me? Out of all of the water bender’s you know, you could have picked anyone. Why me?”  
Gandalf let out a puff of breath, “because Bilbo, you an exceptionally simple creature.”  
The hobbit crinkled his nose, “you realize that if you had picked anyone else this whole thing could have been avoided, right?”  
The wizard chuckled, “perhaps, but then again, perhaps not. I think that it is good to tempt fate every once and a while my dear Bilbo, because,” he turned to look the hobbit in the eye, “you never know what good things you will find that way.”  
Bilbo looked off into the horizon, blinking rapidly, “I suppose that’s a pretty good answer.”  
And then, the sun began to rise from over the mountainside, signaling a new day…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That was it...I really hope you all enjoyed it!  
> Thank you all for reading!!

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you all enjoyed reading this! Stick around to read the rest, which will be put up soon!


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